Notes: Pipe Tobacco Hall of Fame Inductee. The Prince Albert Blends were introduced by R.J Reynolds in 1907. R.J. Reynolds sold the brand to the John Middleton Tobacco Company, Limerick, PA, in 1987, who has been producing it ever since.

I'll admit, for many years I was too much of a tobacco snob to try PA. I mean, come on, my grandpa smoked this stuff. But wait! I always loved going to visit Grandpa; I loved the scent of his pipe. So, I checked out the reviews here on this page, and they encouraged me to give PA a try. I had to wait till I was back in the States, though, since I cannot buy it here in Germany. Finally, in 2011, I had a chance. Well, I was pleasantly surprised...

Packaging: old-fashioned, but nostalgic, although I wish that the description on the pouch were better. Whether you buy the cellophane wrapped box with "luxury" pouch or the tub, both will have kept your PA from drying out. The "luxury" pouch is somewhat awkward and doesn't close well, making it difficult to keep the tobacco moist. The tub does a fantastic job of keeping the tobacco just right, even over a long period of time (right now, I am finishing a tub I opened 14 months ago, and the moisture content is just fine. Contrary to several other reviewers, I do not detect any traces of propylene glycol.

Smoke: PA has a fine cut, which allows for an initial gravity filling of the bowl. It packs well and lights up easily. The burn is cool and even. It is possible to rush this and get "tobacco juice" and tongue bite, but you really have to try hard. The taste is pleasant, ranging from coffee and chocolate to nuts and licorice.

As many have remarked, this is not a gourmet meal, but rather meat-n-potatoes. I would recommend this to any pipe smoker, expert or novice, fan of English or aromatic. It is a good smoke any time of day.

When I see anything other than four stars for Prince Albert, I have to remind myself that all of us are different and have different tastes and taste buds. It's hard to see such an old friend get anything but the high praise I believe it deserves. There's a reason this tobacco has been around for over a hundred years. It's just plain good. I have two bowls of the Prince every morning with my coffee. I always smoke it in the same corncob pipe that's reserved just for Prince Albert. This is the way to really enjoy this tobacco. If you let it, the subtle goodness of Burley tobacco will wash over you and take you to a simpler time and place. What a joy it is sitting on my porch each morning, puffing on my old cob full of Prince Albert tobacco with my favorite blend of coffee. I've been using tobacco in all imaginable forms for over thirty years. I recently quit using all forms of tobacco other than pipe tobacco as I think the pipe is better for my health than cigarettes, cigars and chewing tobacco. I'm not a "burley only" man. I like Virginia flake and English blends too, as well as some other favorites I smoke in my brier and meerschaum pipes, but each and every morning, it'll be Prince Albert in a cob that I reach for to enjoy with my coffee.

If you only want to be seen smoking Penzance in your three thousand dollar Dunhill pipe at your country club, than don't bother with Prince Albert. It probably isn't for you. If on the other hand, you think you might enjoy a nice, clean tasting, even burning, non-biting burley tobacco, I offer these suggestions.

Go to your local drugstore and get yourself a good quality corncob pipe. Look for the words "Missouri Meerschaum" on the bottom (they've been making these pipes since 1869). It'll set you back around five bucks. Buy a pouch of Prince Albert tobacco for under three dollars. Grab a pack of pipe cleaners and some stick matches for another two bucks. Total cost: around ten dollars. If you want to really splurge, you can buy a pipe tool for about three bucks. If not, a big headed nail or a stick work just as well for a tamper.

Now go find a nice quiet spot to sit and load up your pipe. Don't worry, you don't have to fill it in pinches and a third of a bowl at a time. Just put it in any way you want. Don't worry about a charring light either. It'll burn no matter what you do and you probably won't even need a re-light. Just put the match to it and start smoking. Oh, you don't have to be careful the way you smoke it. It's not going to bite your tongue like some of the other tobaccos do. Now just sit back and enjoy your smoke. That's all there is to it. Don't worry about breaking in the pipe by alternating half and full bowls either. Even though a corncob pipe does get better after you smoke it for a time, it'll still smoke great from the first bowl. Stays nice and cool too. I've started several of my friends smoking a pipe and this is what I started them off with. I can't think of any better way to get started in the hobby of pipe smoking than this. Also, this is the best tobacco I know of for breaking in a new brier. Makes a very smooth even cake.

Aroma: Smells like just a plain burley, possibly a trace of top dressing. I can?t identify it, nor am I positive it?s even here.

Packing: Can be packed into any size bowl just by putting the pipe into the pouch and feeding with one finger. It is possible to pack a pipe in your car, with one hand on the wheel and your eyes on the road. However, see warning below

Lighting: Classic one-match light is the rule.

Initial flavor: Just Burley, nothing else. Nutty, and just a little bitter.

Mid-bowl: Nice cool dry smoke. You have to like Burley to enjoy this. There is a fairly good jolt of nicotine in it, so it MAY NOT be the best thing to smoke while driving.

Finish: A bit more harsh at the bottom, but not a problem.

Summary: An excellent choice in a cob. A good change of pace if you get tired of blends, or matured Virginias

What can I say that hasn't been said already? For an Over the Counter (OTC) blend, Prince Albert really has no counterpart. I rate it that high. Although switching hands several times, and perhaps tweaking the recipe along the way, this blend has been in continuous production since 1856. And that's all you need to know. It was there during the Civil War! PA has always been a very versatile tobacco, used not only for pipe smoking, but for roll your own cigarettes, as well as a chew. It has a tremendous history, and was a mainstay for generations of smokers, throughout the later part of the 19th Century, and all of the 20th Century as well. Now its still here as we begin the 21st Century. Something obviously must be right with this blend to have lasted so long.

It's primarily a burley blend, with a Virginia base, although I think the Virginias are less than 15%. There is a slight casing reminding me of anise or faint vanilla / chocolate.It's a crimp ribbon cut and packs by gravitation quite readily. Don't tamp too hard however as its a bit moist out of the tin and needs a light packing. It's easy to light and the whole bowl will burn on a single initial post-charring light. The blend smokes very smoothly and very cool. No tongue bite here, even if you pull forcefully. Smokes down to a pearly white ash, with nary a dottle remaining.

I use PA in my pipe tobacco rotations, and it is never far from reach. It's also an ideal blend to use for home blending. Try adding 15% Latakia to PA for a real nice smoke. I haven't tried adding Perique, but I know some pipe smokers that swear by it: a Burley / Perique blend. Also, what I really like about PA, is that it serves as an excellent palate cleanser. I am a Latakia hound and will consume Lat blends up to 50% (like Star of the East) with relish, bowl after bowl. However, it can produce a sensory overload, and a good way to clean the slate so to speak is to down a few bowls of PA. Then upon returning to the Lat blends, they taste a new and the palate is refreshed. A pipe smokers mouthwash if you will.

So, give the old PA a go, and as you smoke think of the countless number of grandfathers who lived off of the stuff. It'll bring a smile to your face, as the wisdom of the ages awashes your senses. I rate it four out of four stars!

Until recently I never bothered to try Prince Albert. Maybe too many butt end of jokes, but I finally gave in. What can I say, this has become my daily go-to tobacco. It's just a pleasant, good tasting, all around daily blend. What else could I say, cheap and good. Great everyday tobacco.

I really like this tobacco because of its value and because it smokes great! There is simply no bite with this tobacco and it's something that I can smoke everyday because its plain and simple it doesn't have a flavoring that you get tired of. If you just like tobacco and the taste of tobacco then I highly recommend this.

After nearly 40 years of pipe smoking, I finally decided to try this blend. I was initially put off by the chemical taste, but after dedicating one briar and one corncob to it, PA has a mild chocolate and molasses taste along with some nuttiness and earth. Has a little bourbon in the topping. Burns at a reasonable rate to ash with little trouble. There is an inconsistency in the flavor because the topping will flash off a bit in the last quarter of the experience, and you'll get both a mild harshness and some cigarette notes if you are a fast puffer. Your taste buds will also get more of the tobacco themselves. The nic-hit is mild. Won’t bite. Doesn't need to be relit much, packs very easily, and leaves little dampness in the bowl. Easily an all day smoke. One of the few tobaccos I have smoked that m'lady commented favorably on when she smelled it. I give it two and half stars mostly because of aforementioned drawbacks.

Allright you lot, you've picked on a good pal of mine for far too long now and it's high time I come to the aid good Prince with my own personal songs of praise. That's right, praise, and praise of the highest kind that I can here muster.

A little history here before we begin. For years I was a devoted English blend smoker, and the more Latakia, the better. If ever I would venture into any other sort of blend styles, you could bet that there would still be a good portion of condimental leaf to back them up. Sweet Mamma Latakia was my main squeeze, and Papa Perique was her Pimp Daddy. Gags and wheezes from all within a hundred yards of me be damned. Who needs friends when you have Pirate Kake?

One day, oh, about five years ago, I did something unexpected: I bought a pouch of Prince Albert. I cannot say just why. In my initial pipe smoking of the early years I had tried nearly all that my local drug store had to offer in the way of tobacco and, as far as I was concerned, I could go to the grave without ever tearing open a foil package again. I was amused by the voluptuous red envelope within the carton, how the supple, synthetic material would have made the tobacco inside feel fresh no matter how long it had been on the shelf. Upon opening, I was greeted with the sort of smell that was far from what I was accustomed to with the sort of blends I usually kept on hand; musty, nutty, but with a fresh sweetness. No great contrasts between brights and blacks here, just on uniform, friendly, woody brown. Phu...child's play. I supposed that I may as well smoke some all the same. With packing, I encountered not the cracking, dust dry tinder I had expected, nor the finger-sticking glycol goop that is the other much bemoaned end of the drug store spectrum. This felt like all blends should feel, fluffy, yet substantial. It packed well, then again, I almost always pack well, more me than the tobacco, I was sure. Well then, time to light up. 'Sweet mother of all that is good and pure!'

That's right. I was from that moment hooked. It was burley. It was the kind of burley that I had sometimes heard of, a cool, creamy, nutty leaf that is always there when you need a friend. It was the kind of burley that made me realize why this crop mutation from the eighteen sixties was kept around at all. Today and ever after Prince Albert is with me always. This is not to say that I have forsaken all other blends--I hate people who do that--just that I now have a standard against which all other tobacco is judged. Keep them coming you Pease's and Tarler's and Books' of the world, I'll gladly load up on anything you put out there, be assured though with them, as with all others, I am bold to say- 'Yes, it's good, but it's not PA.' (Please note that this review was written and posted some time ago and has merely been edited to remove simple errors. My opinion of Prince Albert as given here still holds, however)

Prince Albert is my favorite, narrowly edging out Carter Hall, another traditional burley and Virginia blend. The boiler plate above says "Air Cured," but it is my belief Prince Albert comprises both burley and flue cured tobaccos. It is slightly sweetened and flavored. Prince Albert may also contain a portion of Turkish.

What are the flavorings? For starters, there is a distinct aroma of cocoa. Camel cigarettes provide more clues. When Camels were introduced by R.J. Reynolds, which produced Prince Albert at the time, they were advertized as using the same new process as used for Prince Albert. One suspects that refers to the use of liquorice. (Tobacco-processing today consumes some 80% of the total liquorice production.) R.J. Reynolds today lists the ingredients for Camels as including cocoa, liquorice, and brown sugar. Types of tobacco are not differentiated, but we note that Camel has traditionally advertized it contains Turkish tobacco.

Whatever the ingredients, Prince Albert is a fine pipe tobacco. It burns unusually well, has a delightful flavor, and does not bite.

Prince Albert tobacco is named after the future King Edward VII of England, not his father, who was also a "Prince Albert." The Prince Albert tobacco tin briefly bore the inscription "Now King" during his reign. Albert's mom, who was a Victorian (snort), despised smoking and would not allow it in the palace. Reportedly the first thing Al or Ed did after being crowned was to stride into a drawing room with a stogie and announce, "Gentlemen, you may smoke."

"Cheap, sour burley" was my initial reaction to this old drugstore blend. Then it occurred to me that people who like bitter Dutch beer or black, unsugared coffee might enjoy the initial astringency of this otherwise mild burley cavendish. It is just the taste of Burley tobacco. And after I tried it in a small-bowled pipe and got it to smolder smooth and quiet, the cashew-nut gentleness kind of appealed to me. Nice, smokey after-taste. I managed the whole pipe with just one match. Considering that the pouch cost a couple of bucks (1 ½ ounce) members of the brotherhood on a fixed income might enjoy Prince Albert quite a bit, especially if they are slow-puffers. Overheat this and it will get sour and bite like hell.

I am not sure what "crimp cut" means, as it refers to some older American description. In the pouch, this looks, smells and is cut like a typical Cavendish burley blend. I don't quite see how one could roll it into a cigarette. Too thick.

Mind you, I am talking about the straight PA in the red-coloured pouch or can. AVOID the cased versions, they are AWFUL.

As a dedicated English blend smoker for forty plus years who has fairly recently been taken with C&D's Burley flakes and especially Old Joe Krantz, I gave into the temptation to pick up a pouch of this a couple of days ago. In general I have enjoyed no codger blend with only Carter Hall getting a "dire emergency" pass. And I mean dire. But I had never tasted PA and it was time. Unlike everyone else here, my pouch must have languished on the shelf for quite some time. The dark, broken ribbons were dry. No evidence of PG ever being in it either - THAT dry. Pouch note was pure tobacco - no toppings/casings could I detect, just a dry grassy, musty, tobacco aroma. This was good news for me. I can't take flavorings in general.

Loading a corncob was easy, instant ignition with no relight necessary. Initial hit of flavor, just plain good burley. I debated with myself to rate it as "Extremely mild" in ratings as many have here. But honestly I could not place the flavor as added, just "seasoned" a tad. This means to me that the cavendish denotes slightly sweetened, not otherwise flavored. By the same token I don't consider sugar a flavoring in my cooking, just an enhancer like salt. Hence, seasoning. Same here.

I am smoking a cob right now as I type and thoroughly enjoying it. It's very mild, no Nic bomb here. It seems mostly dark burley which I like. Effortless smoking with only a too quick burn for disappointment, even after I added moisture. I thought adding some moisture would bring to the fore any casings; no, I can't find any.

Pleasant aftertaste, no bite to write about. I cannot liken it to any prepared blend, just my home mixes of Burley/Virginias - this better than mine. Effortless pleasure. I cannot see how this is compared to Carter Hall in the least except sitting on the same shelf at the retailer.

I thought I was buying a pouch destined to occupy my Jeep console for the times when I forget to pack a favorite blend. What I found was a keeper. No surprise it's in the Hall of Fame.

Oh yeah baby! I have purchased pouches of the Prince many times over the years and smoke the stuff up just for the fun and nostalgia. Pure burley, cool and pleasant. The room note sends the ladies running--in your direction!

If cheap and tasty rings your bell, then ding-a-ling, grab a pouch of the Prince!

As I recently tried Carter Hall (CH) and loved it, I will be brief with the Prince:

Like CH, the Prince has been around since at least 100 years. Maybe there is a reason to it. Maybe it's just because it is delicious, without any other pretense than giving the pipe smoker what he wants: a pleasurable smoking mixture!

However, the Prince is different than CH in that its aroma is rather on a tiny, sweet floral note that is interesting when smoked, and in the fact that the roomnote will become rather on a kind of cigarettish note by the last third or so.

This being said, it is not offensive like cigarettes.

A classic and uncomparable tobacco that must be tried... Highly recommended.

Let me start by saying that I'm not the worlds biggest Burley fan. I very much prefer either pure Virginia's or English Mixtures. That being said, Prince Albert is decent.

Prince Albert provides an affordable, palatable and easy way for someone to learn pipesmoking. It lights and burns well, provides little tongue bite and doesn't leave the pipe smelling like a perfume factory. For regular pipe smokers, it is also consistent, available and smokes great either outdoors or inside with a cup of coffee and newspaper. Nicotine is noticeable, but certainly not overwhelming.

For Americans, who are accustomed to Burley in their cigarettes, Prince Albert may also be a great transition for those who wish to become 'pipe only' smokers. The old ads did say that it was great for pipes or cigarettes!

I enjoy a pipeful of Prince Albert while camping, or in the great outdoors. It is a great way to enjoy the simple things in life. Also great for blending.

The Prince Albert in the can joke is older than I am. OTC blends are held in such distain that I avoided them, until now. Curiosity finally got the better of me.

The good: It's cheap, I mean - really cheap. It is readily available at almost any drug or grocery store. It comes in either a handy size 1.5 oz. pouch or the large jar. Perfect moisture right out of the pouch. To say that this blend lights easily would be an understatement. One simply has to touch the flame to the tobacco, and it lights instantly and fully. Burns superbly, almost no relights are necessary. Lots of smoke. Pleasant aroma. Burns COOL. Delicate taste. No bite. Zero dottle.

The bad: Very mild monochromatic taste. Must be sipped for maximum enjoyment. Puffing can and will cause the burley to become harsh, and the taste can erode quickly mid-bowl if this happens. Burns so easily that the bowl doesn't last all that long.

I can see now why this blend has been around for decades, and why it was a staple of our grandfathers. For the money, it isn't half bad - a pleasant surprise. A nice change of pace from smoking Latakia bombs, Balkan's, aromatics, straight Virginia's, flakes, and the dreaded tongue burners.

10/22/2008 Can't complain a lot about this baccy but can't get excited either. It is near the top of the heap for a drug store blend but I have to say that I think Carter Hall has it beat hands down.

PA comes in about as perfect a form as possible. Just the right amount of moisture and a perfect cut with no chunks or sticks. The pouch aroma is very pleasant. It packs easily, lights easily, stays lit well, puts out clouds of smoke without having to suck up and has an acceptable room aroma. One problem I experienced was that from a full bowl, at about 2/3 down in the bowl, it started to get stronger and stronger until I had to dump it because of the foul taste it was putting out. Cutting the bowl pack to about 2/3 or smoking it in a wide bowl alleviates this. The only other problem, which I consider the worst, is that it leaves a really bad after odor in the pipe that lingers a long, long time.

If this were just a so,so blend, I would give it three stars but because it has some shortcomings that I cannot live with for continued use, I give it 2 stars.

Update 1/26/2010 Have learned by experience that this baccy has to be dried a bit to keep it from becoming overpowering in smoking it and from leaving bad after taste and odors in the pipe while smoking a full bowl. Upgrading to 3 stars and will continue to work with it.

Prince Albert is another one of the classic American burley-based blends, largely unchanged since its original formulation. The crimp-cut was intended for either cigarettes or pipe smoking. There's nothing in this blend but burleys; that's it. Today, since the Middleton Company took over the blending and sales, there has been some variations with flavoring, including a vanilla overcase and a brief attempt at menthol, but if you get the red can or the red pouch, then it's pretty close to what I smoked in the mid-1960s. This is a hard tobacco to objectively review: you either like it or hate it. I like it, because the flavor is the flavor of real tobacco, w/o casing and condimental tobaccos. I'm sure there's propylene glycol as a humictant, but PG burns off quickly WITH NO AFTERTASTE. PA: Best when fresh. Better in a pocket tin than in the pouch. PA can grow on you, in a mid size billiard on a cold morning sipping coffee before fishing or hunting, there's little better to smoke. It packs easily, lights quickly and after the initial bitterness, can settle into a pleasant smoke. It always seems to burn to a fine gray ash for me, w/o a lot of moisture. The room aroma can be bitter if you were expecting something other than tobacco. I have dedicated pipes for PA and H&H only, to preserve the quality of the smoking. But, I wouldn't recommend it to relatively new smokers.

Update: Since my first review of this blend, I hope that getting older has made me wiser. I have had the opportunity to smoke more PA than any other "Over-The-Counter" (OTC) blend. The term, "OTC" is so much more evocative of the tobacco's true nature of its ready availability than calling it a "drug-store" blend. In any case, despite sometimes being a little too moist in the plastic tub, and I only buy the tub since the pop-top pocket tin seems no longer to be available, PA is a genuinely fine all-day smoke. I no longer smoke Half and Half, because I cannot abide the industrial chemical taste. So many of my other OTC favorites are either disappearing or have become transmuted by their current marketers (to call them blenders insults every real blender). PA has risen to the top of the list as a steady, dependable burley based blend, cool and fragrant, easy on the tongue and respectful when smoked through the day. This blend is not great art, nor was it intended to be. But, PA lends a constancy to pipesmoking, w/o pretension or posturing. PA may be the best OTC blend on the market today. I alter my review to four stars.

I like all kinds of tobacco. English, Naturals, Aromatic, you name it, I like alot of them. So I am always willing to try something new. But when I ran out of my favorit tobacco, I stopped at a convienence store, in a small town, hoping they would have some pipe tobacco. Well they did, but only one, Prince Albert. Never tried it before, and since the selection was limited, I bought it, with my usual open mind towards a new tobacco. When I opened the pouch, I was expecting some form of aroma, but where was it? I placed the pouch right under my nose, and I did detect somewhat of an aroma of tobacco. Well, I filled my pipe, applied fire, and started to smoke. At least I thought I was smoking. Smoke was coming out of my pipe, I was puffing smoke from my mouth, but I could not detect any hint of flavor. I continued to smoke, wondering where the tobacco was. I still saw the smoke, puffed the smoke, but still nothing, except half way through, I was welcomed with a little bite. Soon after that, the tobacco was all burned. Didn't last long. There was not anything realy objectionable about this tobacco, there just was not anything at all to it. I've used some of it, to stretch some of my favorit blends, when I found myself running low, and for this it does fine. However, I still have the same pouch, and its been over three months since I bought it. I don't think I will be replacing it when it is gone. Maybe the Prince should think about abdicating.

Yes, this is an absurdly cheap tobacco. I bought the pouch at my local grocer for $3.

The pouch note reminds me of chewing tobacco.

I don't find this as good as SWR, but it is a very good burley based tobacco. Plenty of flavor and not likely to offend many bystanders as the odor is fairly pleasant. I did find this to be better than Carter Hall or Half and Half.

The old tins of this state "pipe and cigarette" tobacco; however, the cut of this is not what I would call a ribbon and must have changed over the years. Very easy to pack and light. No extra lighting needed. I didn't find this to burn fast or hot, but I got more flavor from it by sipping versus going steam train with it. No issues with it making my pipe wet. No real negatives, no super positives. This is about as plain Jane as it gets with tobacco.

If you do not have a huge budget for tobacco and lack a cellar stockpile, this is an inexpensive and decent tobacco that I would recommend as an all day smoke.

Edit: I like it so much I keep a can in the floorboard of my car now. It has become my most frequent smoke of late.

I've been smoking pipes for about 10 years. Based on everything I've read, I was expecting PA to be a very low quality smoke. One of those 'last resort' burleys that is either going to be as flat as a cigarette or as chock full of chemicals as cotton candy, or both. I've tried samples of some of the other OTC stuff that people have gifted to me (Half & Half, Carter Hall, Walnut), and came to the conclusion that I probably wasn't a burley fan. Those experiences were enough to reassure me that I was doing the right thing shelling out the big bucks for the high end Dunhill classics, pricey VaPers, quality aged virginias, and of course the powerful new english blends that today's master blenders are expertly cranking out. All of that stuff is great.

Then I recently bought a new pipe and had been thinking all week about what I might want to break it in with. I happened to be standing in line at the grocery store, and saw the familiar large tubs of PA, as well as the pouches. Just for the heck of it, I decided to pick up a pouch for $4. I'd always heard PA was great for breaking in pipes, so I figured, what the heck, I'd try a few bowls and if I liked it well enough I may break in the new Sav with it. Opening the pouch, the ribbons seemed to be of a basically perfect consistency and moisture. I'm not sure how long the pouch had been sitting on the shelf, but there was no trace of the dreaded crystalline goop that is expected with most OTC blends. It loaded in the bowl very nicely, and then I learned the first lesson: yes, as many here have said, it really is a "light it and forget it" tobacco. It is very easy to smoke the entire bowl on one light, without it ever getting hot or gurgley, or threatening to go out. The taste was very nice, cool and creamy. The smoke had body and flavor, but it wasn't overwhelming at all. One of the things I like about smoking lat blends is the nice, cool, thick creamy satisfying smoke on every draw, without ever burning too hot or biting. PA definitely has some of those qualities, but without the ashy-mouth charred-throat feeling that you sometimes get with a large bowl of a heavy duty english. Don't get me wrong, at certain times I like a bowl that will make your eyes water as much as the next guy. But PA is the first blend I've tried where I felt a very satisfying draw (unlike the empty hot-air feel that you can get from aros or even some great VAs), but then afterwards my mouth felt and tasted fresh, and the room note was really pretty pleasant. And I can see why people say it is a good break-in tobacco: the bowl just always seems to effortlessly burn down evenly with hardly a relight, and for me every single time the bowl is burned down 100% to a fine white ash. I can definitely see how this was kind of a "standard" blend for many, many years. Nothing about it is outstanding, but it doesn't have any real flaws either, and is pretty satisfying all the way around. I'm definitely not about to go toss out all of my wonderful fancy blends. But I probably will always keep a tub of PA around as a regular part of my rotation. And I will also keep around a tub of grains of salt for use when listening to the conventional wisdom and herd mentality regarding some of the fads that go around. I've paid many times this for tins that come highly recommended from websites and blogs and have ended up with blends far more disappointing than PA. I get the feeling that, if this tobacco had been discontinued for a few decades, people would probably be ranting and raving about how excellent it was and paying exorbitant rates for it in online auctions (like with, say, Edgeworth Sliced). A lot of pipe smokers seems to let the availability of a blend affect its perceived value. Don't let the fact that it is abundant and cheap lead you to miss out on this great tobacco.

EDIT: It's almost a year since I've written this review, and I've kept PA as part of my regular rotation since then. I work it in every 3 or 4 bowls or so, and enjoy it thoroughly. I bought a couple of the big tubs very cheap at the grocery store and put it in some large mason jars, and I'm sure I'll be smoking that for a long time.

I just let Prince Albert out of the can today! Actually, this is nothing new to me...

I'd mostly recommend this to those new to the pipe, as it is a nice cool mellow nutty sweetish smoke. It needs no drying time out of the can. Even if you're learning to pack a pipe, you'd have little trouble with PA, and it would still burn well; stay lite, and burn cool for you, even if your pack were a bit uneven.

If your gal is one that doesn't cotton to the smell of smoke, she'd more likely tolerate PA because it's pretty darn pleasant, providing you don't pull on the pipe like a freight-train.

PA is not a gooey blend that will gum-up your pipe like some of the heavily cased cavs, and the scent that's left in the pipe is not too bad either, IF you stay on top of maintenance as anyone should if they want a good clean smoke each time.

I used to keep in on hand years ago, but lost interest as I progressed to higher end blends. But, today while shopping, I thought to give it another shot...it had been quite a while, and I'm glad I did. It's cheap, convenient, and I seem to like it more now than I did years ago. So there `ya go.

PA is the tobacco I started with many years ago. I've only recently gotten off my high horse and returned to it. Always pleasant and unchanging. A good Burley with no bite. Benefits somewhat from cellaring for a year but pleasant enough right from the store. The room note is nothing to write home about but is not unpleasant. Smokers new to it should try it in a cob first.

Well, laddies, when I was home in the States recently, on the strength of 1. old memories from rolling my own back in the 1980s, and 2. some recommendations here, I brought back (count 'em) TWO HUGE plastic tubs of PA. Eagerly, I went out on the back deck with one of my nice calabashes (a huge 1950s Kaywoodie) and lit up. UGH. I couldn't believe my tastebuds. Awful! But, full-of-faith, I put it off to having had Chinese with a heavy load of garlic. I'd try again later. WORSE! (The garlic had actually helped!) I've managed to give away one "tin" - and will play around with cutting some other blends with a bit of it, but without high hopes. Alas... a severe blow has been dealth to my nostalgia genes. And, I'll not mention here my impressions of the other old standby I returned with, CARTER HALL. Dang. LongJnSilver - London -

The prince is a nice nutty burley thats pleasent enough but the room note is a bit cigarette like. Yes its better in a cob! Available almost everywhere and priced fairly; I smoke this one on occasion.

In the nearly 10 years since I've reviewed this blend it's seen more and more time in my rotation. Nice.. nutty and slightly sweet, doesn't bite, doesn't care how it's packed and burns cool and dry. A truly wonderful smoke. 3.5 stars for the occasional bitter finish, although that probably has more to do with me over puffing near the end and getting ash. So..rounding up to 4 stars.

...it's been over a decade since I first started here..yikes..time is flying by..

Prince Albert is a non-aromatic all Burley tobacco. I bought some of it on a whim, both to try something different from my usual rotation of English and Balkan blends and because I have pleasant childhood memories of my grandfather smoking it in his pipes as well as using it to roll his own cigarettes. While Prince Albert packs easily, burns well, and brought back the same tobacco smell I remember from being around my grandfather years ago, it's only okay as far as pipe tobacco is concerned. The flavor isn't bad, there's just not much of it, which isn't really a surprise from an all-Burley tobacco. As an inexpensive "drugstore" type tobacco, it's better than average, but with so many better pipe tobaccos readily available both online and from tobacco shops, life's too short to settle for this stuff.

I wanted to give the Prince every chance of success, so I ordered a fresh can from JR since everyone says the tin is superior to the pouch. It smells, tastes, and burns like cigarette tobacco, because that's what it is. The bottom of the bowl tastes like an ashtray. If you like the idea of smoking a cigarette in your pipe, this is for you. If you are looking for a mild, easy to light, pleasant, economical burley blend, Lane's BLWAB is vastly superior to the Prince.

I bought a tin at some sort of tobacco outlet in Kentucky - yeah, a burley in Kentucky. I had tried Sir Walter Raleigh and Half&Half. I was wanting to try another of the classic American burleys, and of course there's the joke. That sealed it. I gave it a try, and boy, am I glad I did.

On opening the tin, I got a whiff of burley. The aroma takes me back to the smell of a Kentucky tobacco barn in the late fall when the tobacco is curing. The cut is described as a crimp cut. It looks sort of like someone took a ribbon-cut and sliced the ribbons into shorter pieces. Maybe that's what other crimp cuts look like. I know of one or two B&M stores that do their own blending that offer crimp cut tobaccos, but I've never tried for comparison.

On lighting, I got the flavor of a mellow burley - nutty and tasty, not overwhelming. I don't taste a casing, but others have described one and have guessed at what it might be. As just about every tobacco - even English blends - have some sort of casing, I will buy that it's there, but it's so light that I didn't notice. What I get is a smooth, mellow burley without any bite. It's not overly strong, yet it still has enough nicotine to have it in a small-bowled pipe.

The tobacco in the tin was sufficiently dry, so I doubt it is treated with PG. If so, it is with a very light hand, not like some that are goopy and never dry out. That said, it has maintained its freshness in the tin and my fold-over pouch for quite some time.

My tastes run from a good English to straight VA and VAPER blends and even the occasional light aromatic. But, sometimes I just feel like an old-fashioned burley blend. PA has become my go-to for burley. While it is sufficiently strong enough to enjoy in a small pipe for a short smoke, I can go back to it over and over during the day without fear of tongue bite. I also agree with the reviewer who said it is a good palate cleanser. It has a great flavor, but it doesn't rob your ability to taste other tobaccos - or anything else for that matter.

To me, the room note smells of burley tobacco after I've left and come back with a little sweetness. That might be the casing others have detected. Whatever it is, the smell is burley to me.

Bottom line, if you like burley or want to try one out, then give this a try.

PA in my opinion is the oatmeal of the tobacco world. There are no frills here, no subtle nuances, no changing a half, quarter or third of the way through the bowl. Maybe some cocoa, but very little, and good ole burley. In my experience, the best way to smoke the old drugstore blends is to not think about them very much. Its hard to pack it bad or wrong in any pipe and they stay lit exceptionally well. It doesn't bite or leave a nasty aftertaste. Good straightforward tobacco.

I've been smoking PA for over 40 years. As others have said, there is a reason it's been in contentious production for over 100 years. It's not fancy, it's not complex...just a good burley smoke. No pretensions, no big claims...just a good, honest smoke for a very reasonable price. For the person who has nothing to prove.

I've never had PA bite or gurgle in any pipe I've ever smoked. The falvor is just good, nutty, slightly sweet burley. The subtle chocolate notes in the background are, I am sure, just from the burley, and not from junky casings. I've never tasted any glycol or preservatives.

You can smoke it straight, blend it with other tobaccos, flavor it with spirits or extracts, and you can even do what I used to do in my younger days. I spent a lot of time in the woods, so to keep my PA from drying out in the Texas heat, I would eat an apple, and throw a chunk of it in my pouch with the tobacco. This kept it at the perfect moisture, and gave it a very suble fresh apple top note. After a day or so, when the apple turns brown, (if there is any PA left), just toss it, and drop in ma new chunk. It doesn't get any simpler than this.

PA is like an old friend, always there when you need it, and always dependable. Prince Albert will never let you down.

I've heard so much about this blend and I'm glad I've finally had the opportunity to try it. Right out of the pouch the scent is quite enjoyable; I picked up a lot of the cocoa smell. Once lit, the smell is much more faint. PA has a great burley flavor and I can see now why it's so highly regarded, especially for an OTC blend. Tobacco burns nice and needs minimal tamping and relighting. I think that everyone should try this blend at least once; I'll certainly be smoking more of it myself!

I got a call the other day asking if I had Prince albert In a box. "Not anymore" says I. Click. This stuff is Very good. I'll give this the best bang for the buck I've yet tried. Hesitant at first because of some other "tobaccos" at the gas station, I read a bunch of reviews and decided to give Old Al a shot. Excellent pouch note. Some Va/Bur with brownie backbone. Light and springy, perfect moisture, packs and burns very well. Consistent flavor through the bowl, nose and palate agree, mostly burley nut with hints of Va. and chocolate and vanilla. Smokes nice and cool down to the bottom. Light it and forget it if you choose to.

PA is light enough to puff after lunch or when involved in another preoccupation but still complex enough for a thorough examination when a more thought provoking smoke is needed. Well done Prince, yet somehow, not quite King's fare. I hereby bestow upon thee the honor of three and a half stars and a place in the rotation.

5.25.15 update--I'm upgrading the prince to 4 star status and a favorite. I have a couple dozen different tins under my belt now but keep going back to PA. If it had more nic it would be perfect, as is, damn near.

I wanted to like this tobacco. I wanted to like it so much I actually forced myself to smoke 1 1/2 bowls before I threw away the can. I actually had to throw away my pipe about a week later when I couldnt stand the smell anymore. It made my throat sore and gave me a headache. Captain Pete couldnt have put it any better "pee soaked cardboard" just about says it all.

Remember the old joke, "Do you have Prince Albert in a can?" Well, if you do, keep him there. Do not, under any circumstances let him out. Of course, these days Al comes in a foil pouch. But, I think the same would apply.

Out of cigarette rolling tobacco, and remembering that this stuff was supposed to be cut to smoke both in ryo and pipes, I picked up a pouch at the local supermarket (only thing they had that would make cigarettes). It was terrible as a cigarette, so I thought maybe it would be better suited for the pipe afterall. The human mouth cannot properly form the words that I would use to describe the taste of this stuff.

The pouch smell was bland. It packed with difficulty; constantly springing up over the top of the bowl no matter how I tamped it. I can only be thankful that I did not light this stuff up in my own house. First light elicited an odor not completely unlike what I imagine a fireman's dirty socks to smell like. And it tasted just as bad as it smelled; maybe worse. The first thing that came to mind when I tasted this stuff was "urine soaked cardboard".

I have never had the occasion of putting a urine soaked piece of cardboard in my mouth, but there are some things that one can just imagine how they must smell and taste. And after smoking Prince Albert, I found myself imagining just how good a piece of pee stained cardboard must taste. It really is that bad.

I have smoked this blend on and off for years now. I've heard others speak of how there are good and not-so-good issue years for it, but I've always found it to be consistent. There is nothing fancy about this classic 'drug store' blend, instead one gets an honest burley smoke. It burns without trouble and leaves very little residue in the bowl. For me, the mild nutty flavor tends to build in intensity from start to finish. I've often wondered if the blender might be using some economy wine for caseing because I taste a port-like influence to the flavor on occasion. There is nothing spectacular to this smoke - but it is at once familiar and comforting. It's not unusual for others around me to recognize the fragrance when I'm smoking it - very often they will associate it with 'ol grandad, who must have burned it without pause or change. It is to be found almost everywhere tobacco is sold, so it is never hard to find or costly to obtain. This blend taught me to smoke a pipe slowly for full flavor and to avoid incinerating my mouth. I don't usually cellar this blend because I have no difficulty finding it whenever I get a yen for it.

Another Middleton classic, and an all-around decent tobacco. I personally prefer Carter Hall, but I enjoy this stuff as well. If you were stuck in the boondocks without your baccies, you could find this at most any drugstore and it would get you by, quite pleasantly if I dare say. Not bad at all...

I had to buy this because it is a classic. I admit, I was curious, and seeing the many number of people that recommended this as a straight burley tobacco, I had to see what it was about.

I purchased a pouch for four dollars at the local drug store and walking out, I immediately opened it up to be greeted by the wonderful aroma of chocolate that typifies a good burley. I couldn't wait to get home and smoke this..but upon that first puff I was just disgusted.

To me, it's like smoking cigarette tobacco out of a pipe. Big disappointment.

When I think of Prince Albert in a can, I want to light a match--for other reasons.

This is a simple, cheap, drug store tobacco for everyone in the world that can't afford to stock their shelves with 10 dollar an ounce premium leaf and twenty year old classic tins. It is what it is; burley. I found it to be plain, but it burned pretty well (maybe a tad dry). I probably won't spend time stocking my shelves with it, but at a buck and a half, I didn't loose too much. Every once in a while, I still crave it.

Well, I finally found myself breaking down and trying this stuff. I actually got it from a friend who wanted to see my reaction. Well I was sorry to disappoint, but this stuff wasn't too bad for a cheap burley. I have certainly had worse. It has little to bring me back, but I would be perfectly content smoking it in a corn cob castin' for some lazy fish. It certainly has its place in the hierarchy.

I can make this tobacco bite. But you have to chug and work at it to make it happen. Load it in a cob, apply one round of flame and sit back and enjoy the buttery, nutty flavor. It heats up and burns quick so enjoy it while you can.

Both blends have a fantastic room note. The essence of classic burley pipe goodness. I give Carter Hall a slight edge here. Whenever I smell someone else smoking it, I can't resist lighting up. To me it's one of the best pipe fragrances out there.

On balance though, I give PA the overall edge. Primarily due to its mellowness (i.e. lack of harshness, especially in the second half of the bowl), and deep rich nutty flavour and aroma. Carter Hall can get a bit ashy toward the end, but not terribly so. Whereas the Prince just gets better and better, particularly the more you smoke it.

And Prince Albert also passes the "road test" without a hitch, where I just load up my pouch and humidor with tons of it and smoke nothing else for weeks. I'm unable to do this with Carter Hall: the temptation to switch over to something else is just too strong.

And PA scratches the itch. It's satisfying. But not too filling, so it's stands up well to repeated bowls. A classic, and deservedly so.

At the time that I tried this I was bit skeptical since most of the inexpensive readily available tobaccos I've found had lived up to their price point. This one was billed as a good classic mainstay and so I was intrigued.

Upon opening the very tiny (and kind of a pain to use) pouch I was happy to find the leaves felt fresh with some moisture and springiness. Packed and burned well and would be a great first time tobacco to try.

The flavor was full, but not overwhelming. It was rich for what it was. Many of the more expensive brands I now use have a fuller complexity, but Prince Albert does fill a good niche.

Does a great job for the cost.

Sometimes you don't always want that top end espresso and just want a cup of joe from the diner. Enter Prince Albert.

Prince Albert is an old standard Burley-based pipe tobacco. My Dad's favorite pipe tobacco was Sir Walter Raleigh but if he couldn't find it, he would smoke Prince Albert. The appearance is a consistent reddish-brown fine ribbon cut; it is fine enough to roll into cigarettes. Because of its fine cut, it packs into a pipe and is lit easily. The flavor of the tobacco is of typical, unadorned Burley: a bold, nutty and somewhat cocoa taste. It tastes the same throughout the bowl and finishes dry and tasty. The smoke is of medium intensity; you don't have to puff hard to be satisfied. The nicotine strength is mild/medium. This is a simple tasting tobacco, not complex. It is of moderate richness but not sweet at all. I smoked it in a Missouri Meerschaum General, a tall stacked bowl.

When I first opened this I immediately thought 'Carter Hall' as I had smoked that before and love it. The packaging is almost exactly the same in description as Carter Hall, just arranged differently. Also just a little disappointed that it no longer comes in a tin, making the famous 'Prince Albert in a can' joke a little sad. It has a mildly sweet smell and faint chocolate to it, and that's about it. A very very pleasant smell, just not all that complicated. What did occur to me was that the smell seemed a little forced and unnatural. In smoking this feeling of it being unnatural subsided but did not go away. It has a mainly sweet tobacco taste with a little licorice added to it. Even though I used a filtered cob I still got a little bite but this can likely be attributed to the fact that I rushed a little and was outside in the wind. A firm pack and slow smoke would rectify this easily. Not exactly ground shaking but I can definitely appreciate why people can smoke this all day every day. Personally, I'm gonna stick with Carter Hall.

(Side note) My grandfather and great-grandfather both smoked this in the past (1920s to 1960s). My grandfather is still alive, and when he tried it again he said it was a fair bit sweeter and less nutty than he remembered. He also tried Cater Hall and said that is what he remembered Prince Albert as.

Two years after above posting: I have now tried the original Prince Albert in the form of a tucked away tin from 1950. Having tried it I can honestly say that the modern interpretation, while accurate in some aspects, can't hold a candle to the original. The original has none of the artificial taste, more nuttiness, and a room note that will win over even the most finicky nose. I don't know what Middleton thinks they're making, but it's NOT the original Prince Albert. Carter Hall is DEFINITELY closer to the original.

i had to try this after reading some of the reviews, but i was shocked when it wasnt what i expected.it smelled great in the box(pouch or what ever its called).the flavor wasnt all to great, it gave me a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach.however the aroma was quite pleasant actually.it tasted like nothing ive ever smoked before, i could describe it as wood chips.

after my experience with this tobacco i dont know whether i should reccomend this to any one.just thinking of this makes my stomach ache.

I tried a 20 year old, unopened, perfectly sealed, pouch of PA the other day. So this is not a current review of course and should not be taken as such. The tobacco was moist and not dry or crumbly so I was convinced the seal had not been breached.

I had bought the pouch/paper box 20 years ago myself and found it recently in a coffee table compartment where I had forgotten it.

Jealous that I had such a aged sample cellared away to try?

Don't be.

After 1/3 of the bowl, I became nauseous and the after taste was terrible. I could taste/smell it, off and on, for the next 18 hrs.

My pipe has NEVER made me sick before.

Don't cellar this stuff, smoke it quick.

No offense to you fans of PA, I used to like it fine back in the day when I always smoked it fresh - I'll remember that next time I find an old pouch.

What was I thinking I bought this at some corner store and for a burley it kind of threw me off, but in a way sweet in its natural way maybe some cheap wine helps this stuff to burn very good. I smoke this in my corncob. I know there is better smoke to be smoked.

Being a younger pipe smoker, I do not recall the glory days of the Prince. This all but destroyed my want to try burley blends.

The Prince Albert I tried was in a "luxury pouch", that reminded me of old "chew pouches". It sealed good, but the top of the blend was dry when I opened it, but the further I dug the blend became moist.

Unfortunately, I could not get into this blend at all, it burnt way to fast and hot for my tastes. I am a well-known puffer and this was relentless on the bite and "motor oil" taste. Don't let it go out though! On relight, you get one of the worst tastes known to man, beyond description.

I smoked Prince Albert occasionally in the 70s and liked it enough to use it both in a pipe and rolled as a cigarette. I think my tastes have changed now because I really don't like this stuff anymore at all. It's just too bitter and too monochromatic. I think the taste has changed some over the years, too, but that's hard to tell as I didn't keep detailed tasting notes in my youth . Even as a youth, though, I found Captain Black to be a big step up from Prince Albert and Borkum Riff, the first brands I tried. If you're a diehard Burley fan, you will probably like this, though, as it's inexpensive and pretty much just plain ol' Burley. If you're like me, though, I suspect you might like Edgeworth Slices even more, and it goes without saying the Greg Pease's Barbary Coast will give you a whole new definition of "burley."

I've spent only a week with the Prince but having had about 14 bowls of it in 7 days I am a believer! It's charm is its simplicity. It's not much more than just some bitter Burley. There's sourness almost like Izmir going on. Occasionally there's some sweet chocolatey notes but they sure are subtle. PA is incredibly easy to pack, burns beautifully with one light, and is the definition of an all day smoke.

Earthy, light and awesome. Bought this tobacco because I heard it was great for building good cake. Fell in love. The first half isn't always great but after you pack it and dump it once, it comes alive. The second half of the bowl is where this tobacco shines. I smoke this almost exclusively. So good.

Wow, what can I add that hasn't already be said. Between Carter Hall and Prince Albert it is hard to choose which is better. They both are about the same price. Prince Albert to me seems to be a little stronger and has a tad bit more nicotene. Both are like a taste of OTC heaven. Nice sticky moist ribbon cut that packs easy. Just the right amount of moisture and freshness. Just light up and it's off to the races. All I can say is, after you have wasted your money on all the imported fu fu brands to look cool and feel like you are a connoisseur of fine exotic tobacco, come back down to earth and load your bowl with the lowly Prince. Then just kick back and relax. Very highly recommended!

Ah The Prince. Subjected to so much opinions. I dare to say,that there are soooo many (experiancied) Pipers here. I feel inferior posting my thoughts. Being a pipe smoker for 40 years, I still dont have the experiance and palate to disinguish the fine hey grassy note of Virginia ,the so sublte notes of a fine macidonia leaf, the prized Syran or Cyeran latikia ,not to mention....ROSE of latikia. What ever that is. I never had Balken Sobranie, and from the really honest revewiers , Im glad I didnt. English/Balken.... well Stinks. Im a pure tobac lover and I for myself anyways, have taken The Prince arm and arm. Nice soft tobacco, easy to light, in a dedicated pipe, (which is key here).. simply down home to real life. A supreme all day smoke. Granted, there are soooo many boutique blends that are fabulous,and VERY expensive, and have tried many upon many, including the release of Balken Sobrainie, in which,I have 8 sealed tins, Prince calls me back on a daily basis. Take a hint GL Pease, and Craig Tarlor.....The 100+ years of PA still stands as a land mark.

Well.... had to try it. Picked up a pouch while on a road trip... Figured it's been around so long, it must have some positive attributes. This was a pleasant surprise for me. I smoke all sorts of blends, and appreciate most. This has a mild simplicity of flavor and aroma I've come to enjoy. While taste is very subjective, I get a very lightly sweet, nutty burley & a coffee-ish - cocoa-ish scent & flavor from this.. and not heavy flavors either.. hence my across the board "Mild" ratings. It has joined my Morning Pipe rotation. If one were to equate the McClellans, Gawiths, and other top brands of the pipe world with the Starbucks and such of the Coffee world, Prince Albert would be the Folgers or Maxwell house with cream & sugar in the morning...( it even sorta looks like coffee in the tub) nothing wrong with it at all, especially when not on the mood for heavier offerings. It also costs little to try.

Brisk morning and I decided to pull out a small pouch of PA. It is not the world's greatest tobacco but a very basic burley mixture. Easy to pack, light and smoke. Taste can get bitter very quick if you smoke to fast. Good room note and cheap. Watching football with this brings back memories of old. Guess that's why I picked it today. Try not to let it go out and relight. Flavor always goes to hell as an aftertaste. Enjoyed with Miller beer. kiss applys here.

My wife picked up a bag of this for me from a Native American tobacco outlet that was shutting down. Although my bag was a little dry(easily remedied by humidifying of course) I found it to be a very nice mild Burley blend, don't think there is any Virginia in there, ranged from red to brown in colour. The strength was moderate, smoked rather quickly but left no tongue bite nor was it particularly hot. It turned to ash quickly but burned evenly to the bottom. It is a great Burley nut taste to it that definately grew sweet for the last half of the bowl. Goes great with coffee. I'm actually quite impressed for the money my wife threw down for it. My wife did not pay much for it so it was a nice surprise, she picked it up knowing I was out of my favourite blend and others I have in the mail so it was a welcomed and new blend to try. My grandfather used to buy this by the larger jar and many "oldtimers" puff this blend and only this blend so it is worth the moderate price and is easy to find. I do recommend it for Burley lovers for sure. I'm also getting into Aromatics and Prince Albert offers Cherry and Vanilla/Cherry cased blends I'm curious to try.

Pipe Used: Keywoodie Drinkless Billiard Style

Age When Smoked: Opened from new pouch

Purchased From: Native American tobacco outlet but can be found in Drug Stores and just about anywhere

A sweet/nutty pouch aroma. Slight creamy/wheat taste with a pleasant room note. If you're ever in need of a quick cheap purchase this is a safe choice. I found it best when smoked in a cob as the cob seemed to bring out more flavor.

What can I say, this was my great grandfather's blend. One of my earliest memories is of him smoking this CH, and Cherry Blend. Smoking it reminds me of him. As far as OTC blends go this is a very good one. The burley is a little sweet, which suggests that it is topped/cased with something. I could also get a note of coffee and maybe licorice as a top note as well. All very mild and adds to rather than takes away from the earthy nuttiness of the burley. Nothing special and it will not break into my rotation other than on occasion when I am feeling nostalgic. Still a good blend and it should be tried by all pipe smokers not overlooked as a drugstore blend.

An excellent OTC burley. Great as a palate cleanser, handy to keep a pouch on hand. And it's what, 3 bucks for an ounce and a half? There's a reason this is a hall of fame blend although, personally, I reach for Carter Hall first when I want a nice cool easy smoking otc blend. I've smoked the snob blends and still do, but it's easy to see the attraction here and I really doubt the Prince will ever be fully out of my rotation. Yet to meet anyone who doesn't get a spark of pleasant nostalgia at the room note, either.

I first smoked this in an MM Patriot, narrow bowl with medium depth, and noticed that although it began too mild in flavor for me to enjoy it increased in flavor the further down I smoked. About the half bowl mark it had reached mild to medium status and I found myself really liking it. Then it ended too soon. Nutty with a little cocoa-like flavor riding on top. Simple, uncomplicated, but pleasant and satisfying. Next bowl I used an MM General which has a narrow bowl and is much deeper than the Patriot. Got much more time in the sweet spot with that bowl. I like this blend. It's not a blend that knocks my socks off, but it is a blend that I can get a lot of enjoyment from.

Mild in body. Mild to medium in flavor with the right pipe. Burns well. Moisture is perfect for immediate smoking.

I still think the best part of this hobby is the endless tobaccos you find to try. Even the ones I may not like, somebody else does so getting too specific on pipe tobacco is in my mind...redundant. I'm in sales and travel for a living, mostly driving with a territory that covers New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana and straight up to Montana, North Dakota and Minnesota. Don't have the wherewithal to pack a boatload of different tobacco so this is my go to. Love it. Just plain and simple good pipe smoking. I use it to mix with the experimental ones that I try that knock me off the porch!

I hate to insult the OTC lovers here, but this is not your Grand Father's PA. Just as the ingredients in cigarettes have changed dramatically over the years in favor of sheet tobacco and chemicals, I fear similar tampering with the PA formula. This is nasty tobacco. Little flavor, full of PG, and drying/aging makes it worse, not better. After a few months jarring it smelled like a cigarette ashtray. Flat, nasty.

If Burley is what you're after, there are much better choices made with real, unadulterated tobacco.

Update June 2014: I left the house on some errands with a couple of cobs, but forgot the tobacco. In a panic, I pulled into a gas station that offered a choice of RYO "pipe tobacco" or Prince Albert. I bought the Prince. Same lovely pouch note: so much promise. Delicate cocoa flavors caused me to doubt my long-held destain for the Prince. Then I smoked a bowl....

The charring light was quite good. Then the flavoring agent burned off to reveal the same ashiness, harsh chemical flavors, and hot burn. My opinion remains unchanged.

Nothing fancy here. Just burley burley and more burley. Pouch aroma is reminiscent of chewing tobacco that is typical to this genre. Packs and lights well. Smokes with no bite. Nutty tobacco is the what I get. I struggle to find the sweetness here that others do. I have nothing negative to say about this tobacco, but there is nothing remotely memorable here to me either. Taste is an opinionated thing and you might just enjoy the heck out of this, but for me there are better inexpensive burley options out there. For the price it's worth a shot just to see for yourself.

If you like cigs then you will like this blend, I somewhat recommend PA on the fact its has a good nic kick. Sorry PA is not for me. Update: After giving this classic another try found myself loving it. It is now my all time favorite I smoke this all day, I'm a Balkan lover but here in the south I can only smoke it when it's cold, that's when PA comes in I can smoke it in hot or cold weather. I give this stuff 4 stars...

My reviews show I enjoy everything from Sir Walter Raleigh Aromatic to Rattray's Old Gowrie to Iwan Ries 3 Star Banner Light to Frog Morton....I'm across the board. That being said Prince Albert is delightful. I love straight burley and this hits the mark. Others can coin the words that I can't type, but this is well worth a try. Its part of my stable.

I am starting to understand more and more the enthousiasm about Burley tobaccos: I smoke them more and more and enjoy them more and more.

This is a very nice, easy going mixture. The tub aroma is nutty and there is something of a liquor aroma too that makes it sweet.

It smokes very well, nutty, a tiny sweet and the roomnote is very discreet. I don't seem to pick up the VA stated in the contents section...It must be less than 15%...

I smoke a lot of fancy stuff but PA is on its way to become one of my favorites. I reach for it more and more.

I understand why it has been around for so long. Sometimes you don't have to pay a lot of money to get really good stuff. Not only will I finish this tub, but I will open and finish the second one and will buy more!

PA is a MUST try for all pipe smokers. I'm a new and faithful fan of the prince!

38yrS ago I smoked my first pipe. Dad gave me a birthday gift of a cello wrapped pipe with two pk of Prince Albert and said,"boy if you're bonna smoke, smoke this". I've learned alot about all things pipe and tobacco since then. Didn't like the Prince then but nowadays I've found that PA still works in a basic, need a fix sort of way. The taste and aroma are passable. About six months ago i gave Half&Half the boot. It just stopped working for me and picked up on PA. PA to me is a nutty, easy lighting, easy smoking tobacco blend.

Currently I have about a half dozen differnt tobaccos I've been working with at the same time. I went reaching for something today with a good nic hit and noticed that everything I had going was predominately 'nice' VA. Hmmm... VA's are tasty to me but somedays I need a good punch of nicotine. Realizing that I hadn't smoked PA for a few months I went down the street and grabbed a pouch of PA for only three USD. When I filled my pipe and hit it, I got instant relief from all the antsy feelings from the day.

Yeah Good Old Prince Albert was around a whole lot of years ago and apparently for a good reason. Some refer to it as cigarette tobacco and taste and aroma. Well lemme tell ya something in that case, it's damn good cigarette tobacco! But it works best for me in any pipe save a 'flake' pipe.

Prince Albert was the first non-aromatic tobacco i smoked, and i must say it opened my eyes. Like most new pipe smokers i started off with the traditional Captain Black White and a vanilla blend or two, which i found enjoyable. I picked up P.A on a whim at a local grocery store and lit up in a new cob. For 3 bucks, this stuff is damn good. Didn't seem terribly complex, but it was a nice, mild, low maintenance smoke that i fully enjoyed. I would recommend this to a new pipe smoker over any aromatic.

overall 3.5 out of 5 on its own, with a bonus point for price/availability. so i guess that makes it a solid 4.5 out of 5

It's taken me six months to finish a 2 oz or so sample that was gifted to me. I first smoked it in a briar but I kept tasting it when I was smoking other blends in that briar so I dedicated a cob to this blend. The tobacco was kept in a mason jar - not to age it but to keep it fresh and out of the plastic baggie it came to me in.

Ok, the quality of the tobacco is suspect, the room note made my kids think I had switched to cigarettes, and it pales in comparison to top-notch burleys but, you know what? This stuff tastes pretty decent! On top of that, it's fun to smoke! I enjoy nostalgic things and still own a slew of 78 RPM records. As the 78 is the ONLY way to listen to old Benny Goodman and Duke Ellington tunes, so too is PA the only pipe tobacco for the corncob pipe. Or is it, the corncob pipe is the only pipe for PA? Whatever - each brings out the best in the other.

This stuff is a half-step up from Carter Hall, a full step up from my memory of Granger and 10,000 light years ahead of Half & Half. No, it's not the best burley blend but will I buy it again? Well... I just might! I enjoyed this on rare occasions when I was feeling nostalgic, and that's a good feeling! The other test for a tobacco is the question of would I continue to smoke the pipe if this was all that was available? Unlike my impressions of Half & Half and Erinmore Mixture, with PA, the answer is yes I would. I'd be a little crankier but still puffing!

It's been about 2 1/2 decades since I smoked my first pipe. Since that time I've tried many blends, both foreign and domestic. Although I love the aroma of a good aromatic, I'm not a fan of smoking them all that much. I prefer a straight tobacco flavor and my friends, Prince Albert delivers. It is a consistent, tasty, wonderfully smelling, bite free tobacco that meets my needs. After trying several blends from the biggest names in pipe tobacco, and some not so well known, my loyalty remains with Prince Albert. I have my favorite, and it's PA all the way.

Do you have Prince Albert in a can? Well let him out! But seriously folks, I've been on a tour of drug store pipe tobaccos and I think I've found something noteworthy. I picked up a pouch of Prince Albert as it's an American classic, and only had to spend 3 dollars and change for 1.5 oz. Upon opening the poorly packaged pouch, the smell of the tobacco is almost fruit smelling. Kind of like Velvet but not so rubber-cherry ish. The tobacco was kind of dry and I blame that on the poorly packaged "luxury pouch" which doesn't have much luxury at all. But I was able to pack a nice bowl in a bent stem cob and light up. Easy false light and the initial tastes were good. Cool, no bite, no added flavors, just Burley. Burned very well for a drug store brand. Stayed lit, lots of smoke, lots of smoky straw-like burley flavor and not much else.

I can't say that I LOVE the taste of raw Burleys but I can definitely appreciate the quality of this drug store tobacco. Recommended. Cheers.

UPDATE:

One downfall of PA was that it was a bit dry right out of the pouch so I moistened it with a bit of Crown Royal and let it sit overnight. HOLY COW! It's suddenly amazing! Still has that smoky straw flavor but with a hint of whiskey notes. Slightly sweet and suddenly a little more aromatic. Tastes SO much better than any other Whiskey flavored blend I've tried. Now 4 stars.

I decided to pick up the pouch version of this recently from Wal-Mart. Not sure how long Wally World keeps their tobacco on the shelf, but this is the second brand I purchased from there that was on the dried out side. Even as such, I can see that this is a good steady tobacco with lots of smoke produced along with a very nice taste to it. I can see why this venerable blend is in the hall of fame. If you are looking for something fancy or with frills, then this is not for you. This is probably the least amount I have ever spent on a pouch of tobacco. My next purchase of this will be online to see what difference there is in the moisture content. Definitely worth the nominal fee for the experiment.

Straight forward as has been said time and time again. However, this is probably my favorite tobacco. You don't have to sit a mull the flavors, you just light it and enjoy. The flavoring is mild but will come through at times from a new tub. It is best smoked after it is dry to the touch yet still soft. I open a new tub when I am 3/4 through my current so it will have time to breath a bit before I dive in. This is not a knock your socks off blend and it is not meant to be. It is just a great smoking tobacco.

It's all been said...I love the stuff...I'm amazed I hadn't reviewed this already. It's hard to find in the Eurozone, but if you like Burley....it's worth looking for. My wife loves it too, what more can a man say.

I'm not really convinced on this one. I guess for the money, you can't go wrong. It's not that it's bad. I can certainly smoke it. It's just not a tobacco that I would reach for if there are others on my shelf. When I smoke it, it just feels like it's not trying. It's just there to be there. The only time I truly enjoyed it was camping last winter. It required no thought or attention, so I was able to focus on my camping duties. Smells like dried apples in the pouch, and I get that taste in the smoke once in a while. Smokes dry all the way down to a nice ash. It seems to smoke very quickly. Room note is pretty good, but my wife says a little cigarette like.

I found this pretty boring. Not bad really, especially considering the price. I would still rather smoke this than any of the Davidoff tobaccos. I would only recommend it for the casual smoker who doesn't have the interest to discover that there are much more exciting blends available in bulk at similar prices.

The Prince Albert I smoked came from a "soft luxury pouch." As I struggle to find luxury in a thin aluminum wrapper, I cannot imagine that this is the kind of blend that took the Prince Albert label to the Hall of Fame. I suspect that what I smoked is a cheaper and more mass-produced version of a much beloved classic.

While this is upsetting, my experience was not entirely bad. The tobacco is a bit dry, and this may be from storage in the unsealable pouch. Such dryness is probably the cause of a hot smoke; my first reason for dissatisfaction. My second problem with the blend is its monotony. Prince Albert is a pleasant but simple and rather vapid tobacco.

While I won't find myself stocking up on, much less cellaring any "luxury pouches," I will enjoy the rest of the P.A. I do have. Perhaps I will even seek out small quantities of P.A. in the future, especially if I find the blend in a tin. I will also recommend this blend to new pipe smokers and former Cigarette smokers looking for a transition tobacco.

Wanted to find a go-to drugstore blend for those times when I'm stuck in No-where-land and there's nothing in sight but a gas station and a Walgreens. Prince Albert just seems too one-dimensional and not as flavorful as Carter Hall, so only two stars.

Yes, I too like to stuff my old beat-up pipes with the good Prince and puff away like a freight train until i'm in nicotene heaven. However, i don't consider this pipe tobacco. When did R.J.Reynolds ever make a pipe tobacco? Have you checked the tin lately, it reads "Somking Tobacco" and what is "crimp cut". Look inside a cigarette.

I think that I understand the good reviews that this tobacco gets but I don't really concur. The taste is okay and the smell is almost pleasant....but it reminds me a bit too much of the odour of cigarettes. It is cheap and is easy to pack and smoke but for me the best use was to mix it with leftover Captain Black White to make CBW burn and behave better. Prince Albert doesn't offer the alluring scents or delightful tastes that caused me to start smoking a pipe. PA may be perfect for a cigarette smoker who is trying to transition to a pipe but it is likely to disappoint a non nicotine addict who only wants to savor great tasting smoke.

I have to admit this is not really bad. I had tried this in the past and really did not care for it, in fact I was opposed to it being allowed into the hall of fame. Recently I decided to give it another shot.

This time around I found the tobacco to be much better, but I did buy the 14oz tub as I've heard they are somehow better. I also have a few thousand bowls of many other blends under my belt since I last tried PA. Don't get me wrong PA will never replace my GL Pease tins for the most part but it will do fine as a fill in blend for a workday smoke. Or when I want something simple

I find the tin aroma to be of apples and maybe a hint of chocolate.

The tobacco itself is not particularly high quality but I have honestly smoked worse that cost quite a bit more.

As far as the smoking goes it was pretty smooth and a bit buttery/creamy tasting. I think this is great with a cup of coffee. As long as you don't rush it there is no bite, although there is a hint of bitterness through the second half of a bowl.

One major point, I can't say there is no PG in this but it is fairly dry in the tub and leaves the pipe dry and burns all the way to the bottom leaving the pipe clean. So if it contains PG, it is very minimal.

I won't be smoking this exclusively by any means but it is nice to have some on hand. Considering I paid less than $14 for a tub I would consider it a good value.

I do regret any negative statements I may have made about PA prior to now. However I do agree with others that you can get a better or worse batch of this. Overall it is smokable, affordable, and obtainable. Therefore I will assign it three stars. It is one of the very few burley blends I can tollerate.

With the way our economy is these days it's nice to know something decent is out there for an affordable price.

Update: Two stars, I can smoke it but it does grow boring rather quickly. It does hit the spot once and a while but I'm neutral on this one. I think it leaves it's character in the pipe a bit too strongly for me. Considering the price, it's not the worst out there.

I tried this due to the recommendations on here...bought a pouch and enjoyed it...then bought an 8oz tub...loved it... THEN, bought a 14 oz tub..something wrong...It was dry so I humidified it properly...smelled great in the tub... smoked it...YUK. Overly smokey, a bit harsh, none of the good natural sweet, nutty, burley flavor...Thought my pipe(s) had gone sour but they hadnt.. I must have gotten a bad batch and in a 14oz tub too!

So, there must be some quality control issues here that may account for some of the bad reviews. Who knows? When it was good, I found it a great smoke for the price. But it does get expensive when you get a bad 14oz tub that has to be pitched!

If you tried this once and hated it...my advise would be revisit it again sometime. You might be pleasantly surprised.

A good old plain american blend that when blended with something such as a cheap Black Cav. gets good results. Too plain and too strong by its self needs melowing and some flavor. Great plain cheap old blend.

A 100% Burley, plain, straight with light touch of top flavoring and casing, simple and extremely easy to pack and smoke. Nutty taste, perfect for happy morning smoke with cup of hot cappuccino. Easy going and Enjoyable smoke in your favorite pipe without complication .

As for the tobacco leaf, Mac baren burley London blend and golden blend seems to be better quality tobacco with better leaf selection and presentation, but they are not better in the smoking quality, taste or flavor, they are just different.

Prince Albert is the best and only. true, straight, natural and neutral burley out there. I smoke this everyday with my morning coffee. Delicious!

After 20+ years as a sporadic pipe smoker(the wife HATES all tobacco), I finally tried the Prince- after hearing an ad on old time radio.

I was not disappointed, based on the reviews here. It is as mild as anything I've tried, cool and mellow, with a very slight nutty taste. The closest experience I've had is smoking a nice fresh pack of unfiltered Camels, and the nicotine kick is about the same.

It's a real bargain, and I found I like it best blended 2 or 3 to 1 with Tinder Box North Sea( the tobacco I started with; I still love the aroma, but I find it too wet and prone to bite me). This blend reminds me of an old drugstore blend I loved, called Kriswill(sp?) that disappeared around '88.

Not a bad smoke on it's own by any means, but the Cavendish I added helps the room note tremendously- my daughters like pipe smoke, but told me plain PA "stinks like granpa's cigarettes."

Well worth trying, as we've all wasted more on overrated premium blends we hated.

PA is an excellent drugstore blend, with little tongue bite and chemical flavor compared to most of its kind. There is a subtle coffee taste over the traditional burley and, unlike other drugstore tobaccos, airing out a while before loading the pipe actually makes a difference.

No quality here, but a good choice for those in a budget or willing to try classical tobaccos.

Of course, one of the first pipe tobacco's I tried a couple of years ago. Eh, what's to say. A decent burley, but nothing to write home about. Smells nice in the pouch, burns a rather one dimensional smoke. If you're starting out, sure this is a cheap way to begin, but think of it like this: if you were trying Bourbon whiskey for the first time and someone recommended Jim Beam, sure, Beam is Bourbon but hardly representative of the stuff you actually want to spend money on. Eventually you'll try some Bookers or Pappy Van Winkle and go, "Ah! Now I understand how bourbon became so popular!" It's not a matter of snobbery, just discriminating taste and it's the same with coffee, wine, beer, etc. Prince Albert is not bad, and it tastes like mild burley pipe tobacco. If that's your thing, then that's just fine. If you're starting out, I recommend you spend the extra couple of dollars on something of higher quality and you'll get a much better representation of what this art is all about. My two cents.

Packs nice Proper moisture No stems Burns effortlessly Burns to a dry ash, no dottle and leaves a very clean pipe Easy on the mouth Side stream smoke is pleasant

Cons:

Room note is acrid and sour like old cigarettes Little flavor of anything

I tried this looking for something to smoke in the house that would find approval with my wife. Neither of us were impressed. Too bad, because for under $20 for a pound and near ubiquity, this would have been a nice ?economic downturn smoke.?

If I hadn?t tried P&W Nut Brown Burley, this might have had more traction with me. All that said, this is not bad and should be tried by everyone who likes smoking a pipe. Smoked very slowly, this is okay.

Picked up the pouch version for a cool $1.85. Opened it up and was greeting with a chewing-tobacco aroma. Loaded it up in a cob and fired away.

The good: Cheap, no-fuss smoking. Almost no relights. Burns completely with little moisture left in the bowl. I don't know what is "luxury" about the luxury pouch, but it's damn useful and puts to shame most tins and especially the bags with the worthless one piece of tape that gets covered in baccy.

The bad: Harsh on my throat. Burley and me do not seem to get along. My empty pipe stank up everything as if I'd left a cheap cigar-butt in a car's ash tray overnight. I have not tried many drugstore brands, but I can say with reasonable certainty that if you put this in a fancy tin and charged $15 bucks for it, I would say the same thing.

This tobacco is as bare bones as a Honda civic with roll up windows. There is nothing that I can say is truly fine about the tobacco, but maybe that is the appeal to me. I enjoy the fact that everyone likes the aroma, and it is so easy to smoke that it is a two match and forget tobacco. The taste is very bare bones burly it is nutty and slightly earthy. There is no sweetness here at all. It is not bitter though. The tobacco is not as wet as I thought it might be, and absolutely does not bite. The only draw back to it is that it does get a bit boring after a few bowls, and is not in my opinion flavorful for an all day smoke. Can you do any better for $2.00, maybe but that depends on personal taste. I prefer Half & Half, but I also like Carter hall, but none of these compare to a rich Latakia blend, but none of them cost less than $2.00 an ounce.

When i took it out of its box, it smelled terrible, which was unfortunate, but the smoke it produced was pretty nice, not extremely aromatic but nice. It had no bite and if it wasn't for the terrible smell of the tobacco before it was burnt this would be a fantastic choice.

Pouch: PA comes in a pouch inside a carton, or box. The foil opening, of the pouch, was not sealed, but just folded over. What's funny is that the tobacco was still moist. Some say it is cased, others say it isn't, but either way, it's no where near as artificially flavored as Half and Half.

Packing & Lighting: easily done

Taste: Not much depth, bland and a little boring; mild. True, it does have the standard burley character, but its qualities are definitely between bland and mild.

Nicotine: rather mild

Room Note: light burley, slighty cigarish

Overall: If this is what's considered a good burley, try C&D's Pegasus. PA has a definite burley taste, it just doesn't have a lot of burley taste.

I have to agree that Prince Albert is indeed a fun and simple smoke that's also very inexpensive. It's an American pipe smoking classic and should be on everyone's "must try" list. At around $2 (give or take) for a pouch at Wal-Mart, it's within everyone's grasp - easy to find and very easy on the wallet. Prince Albert is a great summer smoke or change of pace smoke and when approached correctly, a perfect pipe tobacco for beginners to build confidence and practice the art of slow and carefully puffing. The burning characteristics of Prince Albert are superb - it practically smokes itself, even when barely puffing. Just gravity fill your pipe and after a brief charring light, sit back and enjoy a relaxing, mild and slightly woodsy smoke. The room note is tolerable for non-smokers. Mild, simple to pack and light, burns great and doesn't bite when smoked slowly. Prince Albert just may be King of the drugstore blends.

I'm sorry, I tried PA on the general recommendation of this and other sites as a good example of traditional, good quality burley in an inexpensive drugstore brand. I gave it a good shot but I did not find the tast of this tobacco to be at all pleasant plus each time I finished a bowl the aftertaste was too reminiscent of the scent of the estate pipes that I have accumulated and refinish from time to time. Obviously PA has been a common smoke for many of these. Plus the aftertaste hangs with you forever and can't be easily eliminated. It does have a pretty good nicotine kick so if that is what you are needing then this may be your ticket. With so many good quality tobaccos on the market at very reasonable prices, I just can't bring myself to recommend this old standard.

Ok this is my very first time smoking a pipe but I am not new to smoking hehe. i dont quite know how to review yet. All i can say about this tobacco is it taste ALOT like a cigarette i had to keep relighting it but i think this is because im new to this. It was very dry like bugler or tops rolling ciggarette tobacco. i think that this is because the pouch was not sealed i do not know if this is normal because the box it self was sealed but not the pouch. So theirs my first review just thought i would pop my cherry with this blend. are you suppose to INHALE when smoking a pipe i have no clue ?

Well after my summer of OTC burlies....This one kinda fell short. Taste was ok, nicotine was a little short. Not so bad mixing with Carter Hall (at the suggestion of Big Bob Burley)- the mix was nice in the am. For some weird reason, the mix also smoked better in a cob....But maybe that was me waxing nostalgic....

If Prince Albert was alive and talking, I would not be friends with him. Just like the real Prince Albert, this tobacco was uncouth, uncomely, and filled the air with bog like musk. (Just like the real guy.)

My first impressions of this manila folder strands was pizza box. That's right...pizza box. I kid you not, wink wink. There was a little bit of good flavor, of course when eating pizza boxes there is the good bit of cheese and sauce fossilized into the corrugation. So, in that sense, I might add, smoking the Prince, is like eating pizza boxes, either way you get fossilized cheese. And that awful taste in your larynx that comes with sighting roadkill of escaped elderly.

My advice: Smoke a pizza box, or you can smoke Prince Albert's cremated remains from a snaz red pouch.

May Giebbelhouse send blessings of fertility and abudance.

Cheers, Toe Bacco

"Creature, Halt, and regard me." --Giant pale head stuck in mud because of his own choice and won't leave the mud, even though he has been offered many attempts of escape. Note: He is very suicidal...wants universe to end because of bad run in with Prince Albert. It's actually from a book "The Courts of Chaos" by Roger Zelazney. I added the bit of Prince Albert.

One of the time-honored old names in our hobby, recognized even by non-smokers. If you've never smoked it, chances are you know or remember someone who did.

Well, no one's ever gonna associate me with Prince Albert in their sentimental moments. I have no way of knowing how this stuff compares with the Prince Albert that our grandfathers smoked, but nostalgia alone couldn't put this blend over for me. The pouch aroma was pleasant and reminded me somewhat of dried apples. The blend lit up quickly and stayed lit well, smoked cool enough and provided lots of smoke. I usually resolve to complete a tin/pouch before I post a review. But every time I fired up a bowl of PA, I got a headache. Maybe it was the tobacco taste, maybe it was the nicotine content, or maybe just a case of unfortunate body chemistry. Prince Albert is the first blend that I can truly say I won't finish one pouch of, and I certainly won't be buying more.

A tip of the hat to the Prince for his place in pipe smoking lore, legend and history, but I won't be smoking it again.

I decided to make the drugstore-blend tour and began by picking up a "luxury" pouch of plastic (heh heh) of the following blends: Carter, Granger and Prince Albert.

Of the three, I found Prince Albert to have the fullest flavor.

Out of the burley blends I've smoked I am often left with a taste-feeling that something is missing in the mid-range of the tobacco. Like part of the smoke-note is blank waiting to be filled in.

Prince Albert is the only burley that seems to fill that gap with a mildly spicy fuller flavor.

It burns fast, stays lit, smokes pretty dry but can tend to overheat a corncob. Perhaps I just puff too fast. The wife thinks this stuff smells cigarettish.

My favorite way to smoke the Prince (that doesn't sound right) is in a MacArthur corncob in the morning with a cup of coffee and the morning paper.

The nicotine pickup is substantial and, as I've said, the taste is spicier and fuller than other easily-available "drugstore" blends.

I'm normally a VA, VA/Perique or Latakia smoker, but I find PA to be a good daystarter or mid-day pick-me-up.

I highly recommend it. I keep a big red bucket of it on the tobacciana desk in the foyer next to the pipe collection and humidor at all times.

UPDATE: 3/17/06 DOWNGRADE: some months later, I just bought another bucket. Not sure what the deal is but I am overtaken with the taste and smell of ammonia. I am not a roadie on the pro-PrinceA tourbus any longer.

Image evoked: I would cannibalize the other passengers of the plane that had crashed en route to an artic expedition rather than to seek warmth from such putrid tinder.

Prince Albert - I bought this from a local drugstore and was pretty excited to get it home and try this well known blend...besides to find a backky that is pretty cheap would be nice too.

E--GADS!!! I open my pouch to find little kibble and bits! I find a bunch of light brown/tan pebbles...the tobacco is fossilized! This stuff must be dried out? I hope it doesn't normally come like this.

I proceeded to pour some Albert rocks into my pipe and made the mistake of packing with my finger and damn near drew blood. Took a few puffs and set er down. Bad experience to say the least...might have to try a fresher pouch...ah not anytime soon...that was a total nightmare!

Boring, this about as plain as tobacco can get. Not necessarily bad but not good either. In the box it smelled odd, kind of like the smell when someone first lights a cigarette. I almost forgot I was smoking at all, as this had no flavor I could detect.

I find the Prince to have a little more depth of flavor than some of the other 'drugstore' blends. While not exciting, it's an honest tasty and dry smoke, and won't gunk up your pipes. No problems there, and no nasty topping.

I would rate Prince Albert higher, but the burning qualities are not to my liking. The 'crimp cut' incinerates pretty quickly and you have to puff really slow or you'll burn up your pipe.

And I forgot to mention the sparks!!! There is clearly a burning accelerant in here as a previous reviewer mentioned that I both see and hear. Reminded me of those magic relight candles. Obviously, one match is all you need.

Aside from the chemical adulteration, an ok tobacco. Certainly a notch above Half and Half, but Granger is still my #1 in the low-budget tobacco category.

It's not bad for a drug store blend. Light casing, more complex than most of the "sticky" blends like Captain Black, but still not anything to write flowery poetry about. A good cheap smoke for when you're in the mood for something less sugary but you're broke or isolated from your tobacconist.

I have many jars of four-star blends here, but for some reason I keep buying Prince Albert whenever I go to the grocery store. It's cheap, plain, good old burley.

Actually, I like to keep some burley around for mixing in with other tobaccos and for just smoking it in its own right. Prince Albert is a good pleasant smoke when you are in the mood for some mild puffing . It has a woody or nutty sort of flavor that is rather subdued. It lights easy and doesn't tend to scorch your tongue at all.

I often take some of this and mix it in with a straight virginia to cool it down a bit and reduce the bitey character of the virginias. All in all, its a good base tobacco to keep around the house. I think its one of the best drugstore tobaccos and considering its wide availability, low price, and decent quality.

This has been my service tobacco for the past three years and I have enjoyed it very much. It lights very easily and does not require many re-lights. I will not smoke any tobacco that bites my tongue and this one seems to have no tongue bite at all. A great tobacco for smoking while doing other activities that you don't want to have to fumble around with re-lighting your pipe. When I sit down in the evening and listen to music, I will choose a different tobacco that I enjoy and don't mind if it reqires alot of re-lights. If you want a good smoke for an active lifestyle, or for breaking in a new pipe, give this one a try.

Prince Albert, named not for Victoria's husband but rather their son, the future Edward VII (yes, he has a cigar named for him, too), is a very straightforward tobacco. It is plain, unadorned Burley. Period.

Now, if this is your type of thing, PA is the way to go. As an unabashed aromatic lover, I thought this might make an interesting alternative to latakia, which I frankly detest. My first bowl was a pleasant change of pace, but something bothered me about it. After my second bowl, I knew what it was; by my third and final bowl, there could be no doubt: PA tastes and smells pretty much like cigarette tobacco (after all, it is also used in rolled cigarettes), and I do not appreciate the ashy, nasty aftertaste this left on my palate.

I will never again buy a pouch of the Prince, but compared to the revoltingly tangy, barbecuey taste and smell of latakia, this really is a prince among tobaccos. But I'll stick with my Mixture No. 79, thanks.

(And before all you latakia lovers send me hate mail, note that I don't disdain other people's blends--I just can't stand the stuff myself. So rest easy and smoke another bowl of Nightcap, gents!)

As MParker mentioned in his review , I had a similar experience with Prince Albert. I purchased it while on a business trip after I ran out of my usual custom blend. I fully agree with mparkers statement ,Once you try it, unless you plan on smoking Prince Albert from then on in that pipe , just throw the pipe away because it will never smoke right again. I wound up pitching a $125.00 briar bent apple. It left the nastiest glop in the bowl and even after a good cleaning is still wasnt right. If you plan on trying this tobbaco , go to a drug store and buy a $10.00 Dr Garbow pipe. I dont recommend trying this mixture in your $600.00 Tokutomi or your $200.00 Mastro De Paja

When I was a little gnome sitting at my grandpa's knee, he always had a pipe of Prince Albert going. It is one of my fondest childhood memories. When I started smoking a pipe, I just had to try some. I found it to be rather flat and flavorless. It was very dry out of the pouch, although who knows how long it sat at the drugstore. I suppose if I get extremely nostalgic about grandpa, I might smoke this again, but I'd rather spend my two dollars on something else.

I would have to say that sampling Prince Albert was perhaps the most boring and uneventful 10 minutes of my life. This blend is not inexspensive, it is dirt cheap (dirt being the operative word). It has a mild and nutty flavor and burns well but is flat and base. Smoking Prince Albert robbed me of 10 minutes of my life that I can never get back. The only reason I kept the remainder of the pouch is because I threw it left-handed and missed the trash can.

Tobaccos like Prince Albert & Sir Walter Raleigh (SWR) saved me from another aborted pipe smoking quest. After I burned out on Captain Black white label, and could not taste it anymore, a bit of dry SWR left over in a pouch someone had sent me, refreshed me. And then I tried Prince Albert, and found it delightful.

I have moved on from Captain Black, and other drug store blends to some great McClelland Virginia-Periques, and Gawith, Hoggarth Virginia Flake tobaccos. But, I still keep a small Kerr jar of Prince Albert handy, because it's just plain good. I'd even consider it one of my desert island tobaccos.

Am I being punked? How does this tobacco have any favorable reviews? The best way I can describe Prince Albert's room note and taste is that it was like cleaning out the inside of a Phillies Blunt and dumping it in my pipe. Worse yet... it's loaded with the chemical. It immediately dried out and stuffed up my nose like a 99 cent cigar. I'm not a snob. I like Captain Black and don't mind Half and Half, but Prince Albert doesn't belong in a pipe.

Pipe Used: MM Cob Pipe

Purchased From: Walmart

Similar Blends: Carter Hall, and any of the giant bargain bags of tobacco..

Ah, the ole Prince. Prince Albert holds a special nostalgia for me, since it was the first pipe tobacco I ever tried (save for a brief trial with some cherry stuff as a teenager....but that doesn't really count).

Simple? If you take it at face value, yeah. You can mindlessly puff PA, and just get that mild straight tobacco taste. If you pay attention, though, there really is a lot going on flavor wise. There's the nutty burley flavor. There's the sort of raisin-y pouch note that carries over to the smoke. There's an almost chocolate-esque flavor to the finish. There's some sweetness in there. And I get something else, too - a soft creamy flavor, sort of a butter-vanilla-butterscotch, but not really close enough to any of those to say "that's what it tastes like"....it's a very pleasant flavor, I assume must be from the topping. Perhaps I'm over analyzing. There's absolutely nothing wrong with just puffing away on PA and not picking apart the minutia of flavorings - that's the way I smoke it most of the time. But I figured the prince deserved a bit more than that in my review

If a newbie ever asks for a pipe baccy recommendation, PA is the first one I mention. It's the easiest to smoke blend I've found. It's never too moist, it's so easy to pack, and it takes a flame effortlessly. There aren't many blends that I could confidently claim to be able to finish a bowl with a single paper match, but I definitely could with PA, straight out of the pouch or tub.

Which brings up another point - pouch vs tub. Yes, they are the exact same blend. And there's nothing inherently wrong with PA in a pouch. But I've found the quality of the pouches to be a bit inconsistent. Sometimes you get one that tastes just like the stuff from a tub...but sometimes it's a little drier, and sometimes the flavor is a little muted. I assume this is due to the packaging not being able to keep it as fresh as long. It's not a huge difference, honestly...and I wouldn't recommend anyone buy a 14 ounce tub as their first trial run with any tobacco. But if you smoke PA regularly and usually buy pouches, you'd definitely be well served to buy yourself a tub next time.

This was my dad's pipe tobacco, always Prince Albert and always in a Missouri meerschaum. I too prefer the corncobs but differ in that I sample as many tobacco blends as I can, classic or new, OTC or small batch I will give it a try. Most of the time I come away happy but very few blends occupy a permanent place in my rotation, but Prince Albert is one I never run out of. Sometimes I go weeks without loading up a pipe full of Prince Albert, other times I smoke it every day for a week or more. It is consistently mild and comforting. Doesn't bite, doesn't have a heavy flavoring or aroma. It just is, someone on here said PA is like a cup of coffee at the diner and that is a perfect description. It is timeless and just about every pipe smoker has sampled this simple burley at one time or another. I do have one cob dedicated to only PA, I have found having a set pipe for this tobacco allows the simple flavor to shine (nutty is the best way to describe the flavor, with a hint of vanilla maybe? These are not added flavors, just the natural taste of the burley) the Prince will be in my tobacco rotation for good, just asithas been for so many pipe smokers over the decades

Burley at its simplest, once someone told me that there was a minute amount of oriental in the original version but I doubt it, this I the kinda tobacco that doesn't call attention to itself but could keep you happy forever, easy to pack and easy to light, notes of cocoa, nuts and tobacco and tobacco it's the important key grandpa had no other intention than to get his nicotine fix quick. I think if you are a American pipe smoker you should smoke all the classics before you attempt to make more "refine" blends, (know you past so you can understand the present). So would I buy this again... absolutely as matter of fact I have a 2 8zn tins stashed away.

Not much to add to this classic Burley blend. Packs and smokes well right out of the pouch. Simple Burley blend with simple Burley taste. I will say that there are better and tastier Burley blends out there (check out Cornell & Diehl's Burleys), but for the price point, rock and smoke on! Had no need to relight most of the time. No tongue bite (and I smoke like a coal locomotive). Wife enjoyed the room note which is always a plus. If you are a fan of Burkeys, set your expectations lower than usual, and you will be pleasantly surprised with this one.

It's the Prince. Even nonsmokers know the Prince. My all day, no BS, bystander approved tobacco. You can even pack it while driving. I love the fine fancy tobaccos, but as others have said, there's a reason it's still around. Two generations of my family have smoked the Prince. May he live on when I am gone.

If your looking for a complex blend to impress your friends then I suggest you look elsewhere. However, if your looking for a mild and smooth (and inexpensive to boot) all day everyday smoke then Albert's your man. I like to smoke this easy burn tobacco in the morning.

To be honest there's not much to write about here. Out of the pouch it has a sweet licorice/anise smell, but this is not detectable once smoked. You get tobacco flavor, and it burns all the way down to white ash. It will tolerate careless puffing without biting or turning overly bitter. So if you just want "a tobacco" this will suffice. That's what it is, a tobacco.

It's not as sweet as Captain Black or Sir Walter Raleigh. It's not as bitter as Half and Half. It's not as light as Carter Hall. It is really a neutral tobacco, a yardstick by which other OTC brands may be measured. Unassuming, unadventurous, reliable, available.

I tend to mix a pouch of PA into a pouch of Captain Black, which helps the CB burn more completely, and lends it a little bit more of a kick.

Trivia: Early cans of PA have a patent date on them of July 30th 1907. This relates to a patent (US 862115 A) for killing the microorganisms living on tobacco by exposing them to formaldehyde. Then the tobacco would be exposed to microorganisms that grow on "good" tobacco (for according to the patent, good tobacco tastes good because of the microorganisms which grow on it) and allowed to ferment/cure, or be treated with licorice. Given the anise smell of PA, I suppose it was/is treated with licorice rather than additional microorganisms.

Over the last few months I've been working my way through some of the classic "Drug Store" brands of tobacco. Of course in doing so I was bound to run into Prince Albert at some point. Years ago I was given a few pouches of OTC tobacco for Christmas as a joke and Prince Albert was one of them but I honestly don't remember if I even smoked it. In any event, every week or so I visit the tobacco shop and pick up a different OTC tobacco and take it for a spin.

When you open the little foil pouch the first thing you will notice is that there isn't anything fancy here just the mild smell of straight tobacco. It would put you in the mind of a RYO tobacco like Bugler cigarette tobacco. Over all the moisture wasn't too bad, I did notice that the little foil pouch wasn't "sealed" and I don't know if it is supposed to be that way or if it was a mistake. I fluffed it up a little bit and then filled my bowl.

Packing and lighting was fine and once it was going I didn't need to relight it.

Now comes the bad part... This just doesn't taste like pipe tobacco. It has a sharp almost cigarette like quality to it that doesn't smoke well in a pipe. It actually tastes like wet mulch or straw. I'm usually a fan of non-aromatic blends but I don't even know if I can call Prince Albert that. I try not to review tobacco based on 1 bowl or even 2 bowls so I've smoked about 3/4 of the pouch before writing this review. Strong points here are that the smoke was dry I didn't get any gurgle but it wasn't cool by any means. I took my time and smoked it slow and still found that it was hot. I didn't burn my mouth but it wasn't pleasant by any means. As far as the "Room Note" I honestly think it smells like a cigarette in that department as well.

At the end of the day I would probably avoid Prince Albert. I can put it in my tobacco journal as something I have tried but just don't think I will be revisiting. As this is the tobacco that my Grandfather smoked I'm a little disappointed that I didn't enjoy it more.

UPDATE 9/28/2015 - I'm going to give Prince Albert 1 additional star. I'm still not sold that it is any better than that however I dedicated myself to finishing a pouch of this because I hate to see tobacco go to waste. It takes a little getting used to the simple flavors that are present in PA and until I dedicated one of my Cobs to smoking it I wasn't too impressed. Once it is smoked without the ghost of other "stronger" tobaccos present however the subtle flavors of the tobacco are far more noticeable and pleasing. It still might not be fore everyone but I would give it a fair go before you make the same mistake I did and judge it too soon.

Back in the mid- to late-60's I used to smoke Prince Albert. Our maid, an older African-American lady, smoked PA in RYO form and nothing but. She could roll up a PA cig in no time; nice rolls, too. I used to buy her a tin every now and then because I would make RYO cigs and sometimes smoke it in a cob. Of course, it was never aged. Miss Ruby and I smoked it too fast for that. I have very definite memories of that tobacco and the odor. It was not noticeably sweet and was a classic nutty burley, with maybe the faintest overtone of chocolate but not enough to suggest it might be chocolate flavored; such a thing would never have occurred to me, who only smoked PA then and had no experience with flavored tobaccos. I would give that old RJ Reynolds PA three stars, maybe a little more, but not four.

The modern PA is not the same. I agree with PhillyB's review about the modern PA. It is sweeter and less nutty than the old PA. Of course, blends change for reasons various, and it is what it is. Maybe it is just my memory at issue, but I don't think so. I also agree that modern Carter Hall tastes and smells closer to the old PA than the modern PA. I can smoke the modern, although it is wetter and goopier than the old (I had little pipe-smoking experience but it always smoked down to ash back then). It is hardly enjoyable and I wouldn't buy it. If you think it's not goopy and chemical-laden, jar some of it for a few months and then try it. The people raving about modern PA would go apeshit over the old blend! I also find the modern PA to be rather bitey, even if smoked indolently.

Frankly, PA ain't cheap (about $40 for 1 lb.); for the cost of PA I can get much better tobacco. Two stars.

The experience of Prince Albert consists of worry-free smoking with casual convenience. Pick up a packet -- or the "Prince Albert in a can" of telephone prank lore -- and stuff some in a pipe, light and go. It smolders for almost an hour in the average pipe, delivering consistently flavorful burley smoke with overtones of cocoa and vanilla. The flavors complement each other, and unlike with an aromatic, the user tastes mostly tobacco and the added tastes fade in after that. It is mild in every sense, both smoke and nicotine, and leaves behind a pipe smoke smell that is inoffensive and sometimes pleasurable. If you are a tobacco snob, content yourself with the knowledge that this over-the-counter (OTC) blend has satisfied many for whom the candied aromatics further down the counter proved unworkable, and that the majority of its appeal is a seasoned burley which delivers the warm nutty flavor typical of that variety. While I may not be a snob, but prefer the term "elitist" or one who favors quality over novelty or popularity, I hope that I never fail to recognize a quality tobacco like this one, which joins Five Brothers on my OTC shelf as a good all-day smoke for casual social events and solitary work.

Pretty straightforward tobacco. You cant go wrong with this stuff. You can smoke it all day, and it wont bite the hell out of your tounge. This stuff is a no-nonsense blend that you don't have to think about, or hit it, and forget it. If you cant find a blend that does it for you, try this, you will be glad you did.

I was reluctant to spend a portion of my limited free time smoking a tobacco that has all the mystique of an inexpensive hand rolled cigarette tobacco, and had this particular brand tasted like a combination of dried leaves, cigarettes, and lawn clippings, I was prepared to author a witty one-star review. But that is not what happened. I enjoyed PA. It is mild and does not provide a tremendous amount of flavor, but it is far from bad. PA is certainly no masterpiece, but it smells and tastes like a pipe tobacco worthy of the title. The ribbon cut burly tobacco also burns quite well.

Sometimes you want a gourmet meal accompanied by the finest wine you can afford. Sometimes you want mac & cheese washed down with a Pepsi.

Prince Albert is mac & cheese, and there's certainly nothing wrong with that. It's your basic American burley blend, hints of chocolate and some fruity sweetness and of course the nuttiness from the burley. I like it better than Sir Walter I think, and it's much better imho than Half & Half. Good, basic, all day smoke. 2.5 stars

This is an American classic for good reason. I've always loved this tobacco, as it was one of the first pipe tobaccos that I ever smoked. I remember my grandfather smoking this from time to time (he was never a long-time pipe smoker), and I loved the smell when I was young. If you don't like burley, you won't like this blend! It is a burley mixture through and through. I honestly can't taste any other tobaccos in the mix. It has a sweet, somewhat fruity pouch note, but once in the pipe it changes to a soft, sweet, almost "toasted vanilla" aroma.

It packs well into anything you stuff it into, and it always lights on one light. The taste seems to vary for me depending on when I smoke it and what I smoke it in; I have got everything from toffee, coffee, toasted grains, vanilla, chocolate, pepper, cream...it's all over the place. I think this blend is best enjoyed, however, early in the morning in a cob with a cup of coffee. Nothing else wakes you up quite like that combo!

I suppose the only down side to this tobacco is that - being a burley-based blend - it tends to burn pretty fast. It can bite you as well if you aren't careful. I like it much better than Carter Hall, but not as much as Sir Walter Raleigh Aromatic (my go-to drugstore blend). It's a great smoke any time of day in any pipe. If you've been wary of this blend, just pick up a pack and try it...but only if you're a burley fan!

As a mostly Virginia smoker, why in the hell did I try this drug store Burley? Mainly for some historical perspective, as it is one of those tobaccos that have been around forever and all of the old boys smoked this.

What it God's name was I thinking? Horrible chemical taste, with an underlying Burley-esque tobacco flavor.

Bottom line- if tobacco was a black market product, this is the stuff they would use to "cut" more premium blends to increase their profits. Spare yourself the misery. Gross!

If it's Burley you're looking for, there are plenty of offerings that blow this out of the water for the same price. Lane's BL/WB comes to mind.

What can you say about a smoke that's been around for over 100 years, that speaks volumes. This is my all day, everyday tobacco. I just think its great, but I'm not a flavoured tobacco smoker, I like tobacco to taste like tobacco.

I would love to put this stuff in a fancy pants tin with some really pro looking artwork under a different name and charge boutique prices for it. My guess is that snobby puffers that wouldn't likely be caught dead with a bag of PA would rave. They'd probably talk about it's superior coco richness on the front, with a light tobacco earthiness on the back of the palate. And how it smokes so easily and to almost no dottle. I'd double down that they'd completely coo over the aroma and how meditative a smoke this has been. But that will never happen. Too bad for them- more for me.

I personally love it. I'm a pipe-smoking newb though-- 10 years on and off. Finally gave up the cigarettes and went full time.

I wish this had been the first tobacco I'd tried. And I wish I'd just bought a cheap MM cob instead of fancy Briars. These burleys are just as good or better in a cob. Cobs don't impress anyone but the smoker, and that's all that matters.

PA has a very light flavor, no heavy casing. Maybe a touch of mint or menthol at the very start. After that it's straight up with a mild toasted-almond taste. Pack light, keep the fire stoked, and it doesn't burn the tongue.

Every time I smoke "The Prince" I find myself bemused: "Why do I like this stuff so much?" I continually ask myself. The flavor is extremely mild with just a hint of sweetness augmenting the basic burley nuttiness. The nicotine level is modest. The room note is inoffensive but certainly not in the category of the mouth-watering aromatics. While there's nothing bad or off-putting about this most classic of the classics, neither is there anything that I can point to and say "_that_ is why I have several pounds of this stashed in my cellar!" And yet, time and again, I find myself reaching for the big red tub and truly enjoying a pipe or three of it. And that may be the key to its attractiveness: Prince Albert is a simple and very comfortable tobacco. It is unchallenging and dependably pleasant. At less than two dollars per ounce (if you shop carefully), the economics of each fill are of little importance (compare this with, say, Solani's "Aged Burley Flake," which makes me feel as though I need to be extracting some minor epiphany with each puff in order to get my money's worth--fortunately, that blend in fact delivers, but that's another review). With The Prince, I know I can expect a decent half hour out of each fill, not feel wobbly from the nicotine but still get a pleasant perk-up, not worry excessively about overpuffing and getting my tongue bit, and not drive the neighbors to take up a petition against me.

Prince Albert is a blend that every pipe smoker should at least try, and try with a mind freed from the very high expectations that we bring to the "boutique" artisanal blends. It is a simple, straightforward, and, under the right circumstances, immensely satisfying blend.

Yes, I've read most of the reviews for Prince Albert. I like this tobacco. The trick to smoking this tobacco is to take the time to slowly experience it. It takes soft, gentle draws to keep the pipe from heating up. When drawn properly, the flavors do present themselves. The flavors are nutty and mildly sweet. I'm not intending to sound negative or sarcastic, but the best description of the flavor reminds me of walking into the shower and smelling scented soap. Women love those little decorative balls of soap that give off that musty sweet scent. That's the flavor I'm reminded of with Prince Albert. The entire time of smoking is to keep a careful draw so as not to over-heat the pipe--that's the trick.

Cheap, smells good in the pouch, burns well and has a good room note. However, I used an unfiltered pipe and the smoke didn't do anything but burn the back of my throat, even though the smoke itself seemed mild in strength and taste. 28 hours later and my tonsils are still raw and I can taste the tobacco in my mouth after a half dozen brushings. Maybe there's some chemical casing on it or something that I am allergic to.

I guess the true value of this tobacco is in the amount of pain and suffering you can inflict upon yourself for only a few bucks. This is terrible.

Prince Albert is a burley blend that every pipe smoker should try at least once. It has a straight ahead spicy, nutty, burley flavor with a pleasant room note that's not fruity or sickly sweet. It's doesn't taste as sweet at Carter Hall and doesn't have the chemical overtones of Half and Half. It burns great....won't go out.....and requires little attention when smoking making it a perfect smoke for working or driving. PA is an American classic and should be in everyone's rotation. PA also is a great smoke between aromatics to put your pipe back on an even keel.....

I have enjoyed pipe smoking off and on over the last 30 years. I live in a small community where good tobacco is hard to find, not impossible just hard. I have tried several different brands of tobacco over the years. Most over the counter prepackaged stuff is awful. Acrid, biting, and oh boy WET. I have been really going through the tobaccos here lately, mostly trying them and throwing them out. But, I was looking for a new Czech tool and spotted PA. I thought, my Great Grandfather smoked it. I should give it a try. Wow, my first bowl took me back to 1968 sitting on my Grandfathers knee. The aroma was not over powering, the taste was mild, the smoke was full and immediate. It packed well, lit right up, no need to false light. Now mind you, it is strong, so if you are not used to a light buzz, then sit down! I love it, it is now my daily go to tobacco. I love it! The burly leaves a nice aftertaste, fine ash, and of course that old time pleasant aroma. I would recommend to anyone that wants a great in the middle price and smoke. Not to mention a little nostalgia!

Not bad, not fantastic. A plain burley that I could suck on all day, but not really much in the taste department, and I do love burelys. Burns great right down to ashes. I will say it has a very full feeling in the mouth, very pleasant. I have ended up using it regularly to mellow out sharper aromatics as well as give them some body. Think of it as a mellow bass note under the symphony. So only somewhat recommended as a regular smoke, though for the sake of a classic it is worth a try, and like a classic it is dependable, it might be just the thing to light up your pipe. Highly recommended as a blending burley, it has proved fantastic in that department.

This was my very very first tobacco to try pipe smoking with last month. I thought it tasted and smelled like...cigarettes to be honest. The pouch smells better - slightly chocolatey and nutty. I felt it was slightly harsh and slightly bitter. I have tried 2 more bowls since, and it may have improved a smidgen, but I'll come back to this one when I've sampled more tobacco and perhaps l can appreciate this one more.

--UPDATE-- have since smoked quite a bit of blends in albeit a short amount of time. This morning in an Eaton cob, for the first time again, enjoyed this blend and moved it up a notch. I can see how this is enjoyed at all times any day. It is a smokier smoke, but def has a slight sweetness to it like cocoa. Goes well in the morning with coffee. Will be coming back to it again in a few months!

Prince Albert is a basic mild burley smoke with a slight topping I can't identify and a chemical note when first lit. There is a little cocoa in there and some nuttiness. It is reliable and easily found. I have smoked pounds of this over the years, so I am not basing this review on a single bowl or anything. I found some other options and moved on.

I am not likely to buy this again unless it is the only option. I think Carter Hall and Granger are better OTC smokes. Having said all this, PA is a decent OTC, and it is one I think all pipe smokers should try. It works well for some smokers, and I get that. I am just not one of the fans.

Edit 2017: Thanks to a generous sample of PA from the 80's, I have had a recent chance to taste some of this from 30 or so years ago. I found the tobacco itself to be softer to the touch and slightly darker in color. There was no chemical note when lighting. In terms of flavor, Prince Andrew nails it.

This is, by far, my favorite of the OTC tobaccos. It is not something you want to sit around and ponder over life’s problems. It is far too one dimensional for that. It is; however, something you want when you are taking a walk with the dog, working on a fence, or fishing. Easy to smoke, satisfying and inexpensive. A good ol burley without any frills. Reminds me of my grandfather and his friends.

If people can get past the pretentious notion that they'd be smoking an OTC like some pauper, you will find PA to be a rather pleasant smoke. It's not going to dazzle you with complex flavor; it's just a simple, straightforward, all day smoke. It hasn't been around for so long for no good reason. Keep a pouch for camping or fishing. If you drop it off the boat by accident, it's no big deal. It cost $2.50 a pouch in my neck of the woods, and there's nothing wrong with that for sure. I keep this on hand for days when a simple smoke is all I want/need. A real working man's tobacco. It doesn't pretend to be something it isn't.

I tried this many years ago (around 35 years ago). Back then, I liked Captain Black and similar blends, and disliked this. Having tried it again, I found I rather like it. Basic, mild, straightforward, perhaps even generic, I still found this slightly nutty/not too sweet OTC to be a surprisingly pleasant smoke. Since I know there are many tobaccos out there I would rate a 4, the question arises would I rebuy this particular tobacco, assuming my tastes don't change much more. In this case, the answer is yes.

It took me many years to get around to smoking this "old time" tobacco. I decided to try and never turned back. This is tobacco for the smoker who enjoys the "best of the best"! I smoke this blend almost exclusively and always have a tin on hand. Carter Hall is another 'go too"! But Prince Albert, for me, is my tobacco of choice. It's just bliss!! I smoke it in a Missouri Meerschaum cobb. I've tried the rest and have settled down to be best ....Prince ALbert!

The tobacco in the pouch smells pretty good, like dark chocolate. PA has great burning qualities. Burns cool and clean down to white ash with very few relights. The first half of the bowl is very mildly sweet and nutty. The second half, the mild sweet taste burns off and the nutty tends to bitter. It does have a very pleasant nostalgic room note.

If you like burley, you'll like this. Millions of smokers over then decades can't be wrong. Smooth, buttery flavor with a clean burn. I have also found that if a tobacco leaves a gost in your pipe, smoking a bowl or two of Prince Albert seems to absorb the residue and remove the ghost flavor. Try it.

I am now at 64 years old starting to smoke a pipe. During my early twenties i went to Peretti in Boston and had a distinguished older gentlemen suggest a classic (estate pipe) and a blend that the Peretti company suggested as a mild smoke. The reason for this was because i was a real rookie at pipe smoking and i had no idea what i was doing. At any rate 2 years later the tobacco andn pipoe were put away and i quite all together. I have now started to smoke a pipe again and am using PA based on that same as a dear friend. It does not bite and has a nice aroma. Would someone else make a recommendation of other mild blends that do not bite. thank you!

It's an old codger burley. It's an OTC blend. It's cheap. It's ubiquitous. It's pretty damn good. If you love burley, I can't see how you would dislike it. Yeah, it has some PG, but that evaporates rather quickly if you leave it out for a little while (I like my tobaccos a little on the dryer side, anyway). Yeah, PA is a little on the sweet side, when compared with Carter Hall, Granger, and Sir Walter Raleigh. But, there's nothing like it when you're in the mood for it. This tobacco was what your grandfather probably smoked. Enjoy it.

When I saw that Wal-Mart had Prince Albert on offer, I figured it was time to try a classic. My sample came out of the pouch a little on the moist side, but still very usable. It smokes cool, and is pretty good about staying lit. My sample was cased with a flavoring not unlike Black and Mild, but a lot more subtle; some tobacco taste actually came through. This blend is a little light for me, though; I've come to prefer blends with a little more of a kick.

As others have noted, this is the pipe-tobacco equivalent of Budweiser. Its main advantage is that, like Budweiser, it should be widely available. If you need a widely available blend to hold you over until your next tobacco order arrives, or you're somewhere that a good tobacconist cannot be found, you could do a hell of a lot worse than Prince Albert.

Recommended, for its status as a classic and availability. Try it in a cob!

So it's an OTC and that will put some off just for it's lack of snob appeal.....however it remains a decent standby and like another reviewer said..."a Budwieser smoke". Well said, sometimes a Bud is okay and so is PA.

Prince Albert - you either love it or hate it! Or so it seems, judging by all the reviews.

This is a simple, but pleasant tobacco. For those just beginning this gentle, enjoyable hobby, this will give you an idea of what burley tobacco is like. This is also probably the easiest type of tobacco to fill your pipe with and keep lit. The flavor is just a burley tobacco flavor, which means you have a somewhat earthly flavor with a sweet finish. The finish reminds me a little of chocolate and of mint, neither one being very pronounced. And you simply cannot beat the price! Try it.

How Prince Albert hasn't been elevated to King after all these years is a wonder to me. He deserves it. This stuff is an excellent burley blend. Even more astonishing is that it is a "drugstore" mix. Just a classic, old school smoke.

The smoke experience itself, is smooth, meedium strength burley tobacco taste. This is not a complex blend. Just a nice straight, smooth tobacco taste. I find the Prince to be a non-aromatic. The topping/flavoring/casings in the blend are very mild and I really didn't detect any dominant "flavoring." There is a little sweetness, some of which I'd attribute to the burley.

I plan to keep some of this on hand from here on out. Right next to the big name blends and the tobacco shop mixes. It is that good.

I started smoking pipes several years ago. After smoking close to a hundered blends of every type, I am starting to settle on the blends I want to keep in rotation. Prince Albert will be one of them. I usually smoke expensive, "big name", English blends because I enjoy latakia. I also like to work in some nice virgina or vaper flakes. Less frequently, I like good burley blends now and again. And of course decent aromatics.

To begin this review I must admit to a bit of a fallacy on my part. In the beginning of my pipe smoking odyssey I fell victim to the ignorant belief that any tobacco you can buy at a drug store or gas station was not worth smoking. My mantra was that any place that I can buy pipe tobacco and Slim jim's, is probably not the place to find decent leaf. As I got older I realized my elitist attitude was false. The truth is the basic principles of economy do not let sub par products last. That is why new coke was gone before most could find it, and Prince Albert has been around for over 100 years.

This may not be the best tobacco you ever smoke but it is a solid product at a very reasonable price. The pouch note suggests some topping, maybe chocolate? but that essence does not come through heavily on the burn. It is a nutty and flavorful smoke and just plain does not bite. A great value and the perfect blend for mowing the lawn or any other activity that does not not allow you to focus solely on whats going on in the pipe. Works beautifully in a cob and every pipe smoker should try it at some point, especially based on the availability and the price (assuming you are in the US).

This is my "Sat./Sun. morning read the paper and have coffee outside" tobacco. It is perfect for that as this stuff is as easy as a Sunday morning.

It sours towards the bottom but I just dump it out about half way and pack another one. With the cost and availablilty who cares, right?

I have recommended this to friends who want to start smoking pipes. It is good in this regard because it is impossible to get this stuff to bite, it lights without a fuss, it is mild with a natural burley taste and a subtle chocolate/caramel topping that is tough to beat and it is so inexpensive and readily available that if you don't like it you can toss it.

It's faults are that there are some major humidicants placed on this which can result in a "chemical" smell when first lit, but in a way that is good because if you have a whole tub of this it won't go bad and you can let it sit for a while for when you want it. Also, PA is very, very light...think ultra light. This is good or bad depending on what you are looking for.

One of the better over the counter US blends with a nice nutty flavor and a little kick from Lady N. It burns quickly and can bite if pushed hard. Like many others have said, every pipe smoker should they this and the other OTC blends. Pipestud recommended a fifty-fifty mixture of this and Five Brothers and I love it. Each blend is just ok, but when paired together, magic happens. Two and a half stars for the Prince.

Maybe I got lucky, but one day I had an itch to try pipe smoking. I stopped at the local Smoke Shack (cigarette, cigar, weed pipe vendor), not really knowing what to expect. I bought some crap pipe that broke right after I took it out of the box, and promptly returned and happened upon a Missouri Meershcuam.

During my little adventure I bought a plastic 8 oz "tin" of Prince Albert. I remembered the Prince Albert in a can joke from when I was a child so my reason for purchasing it was that it was the only tobacco they had that I had ever heard of.

I rate the tobacco 4 Stars because it took me exactly 2 bowls to decide there was no reason to ever smoke a cigarette again. I remember sitting on my front porch in the dark, drawing on my pipe, and enjoying the act of smoking. I also realized I could experience this deep enjoyment without inhaling. Very positive experience that changed my life.

After developing different tastes, smoking many different tobaccos, and spending ungodly amounts of money on pipes and pipe smoking I still love Prince Albert with a bitter India Pale Ale. Oddly enough I especially like it in a corn cob pipe!

I find it is a great morning smoke, or a great yard smoke. Nothing like tending to my vegetable garden with Prince Albert.

PA is hard to find now days! I tried Walgreens, CVS, and some of the grocery stores with no luck. My local Tender box doesn't even carry it. I finally tried Kroger and they had three 1.5 Oz packs which I bought. I guess I will need to go online to buy for the future. I had forgotten just how nice this tobacco really is. Very smooth, no bite, burns to the last crumb. I actually like it as much as some of the VA Flake and premium blends that I have that costs 4 to 5 times more. Very nutty, chocolate under tones and mild room note. I would recommend this to beginning pipe smokers because it will not bite. I have seen too many beginners quit because a tobacco shop sold them aromatic blends that bite causing the new piper to drop the hobby before really getting to know the great experience that most of us enjoy about smoking a pipe.

What can I say...I love burley! I know a lot of people don't like this tobacco...so what. I do and I will continue to smoke it until I tire of it. It smells great and hasn't bit me yet. I know there are a lot more burleys out there to try and eventually I will try some. Until then, PA is my buddy.

Prince Albert is the best tasting burley tobacco I have ever smoked. I have smoked pipes for fifty-four years. For much of that time I used fine British tobaccos and loved them. I have always liked the occasional break provided by burley tobacco. About ten years ago I smoked a bowl of PA and I now smoke it most of the time.

just had to say that to my surprise at 72 I just tried Prince Albert for the first time. At 3.95 for 1 1/2 oz this is the best value I know of for pipe smokers. When I opened the box the smell was strange I think yes it was tobacco. When I lit up the room note was I think yes tobacco As I puffed away the taste was of all things tobacco. I love this stuff!

I have never been one to buy drugstore blends. I was a seasoned smoker before I moved to the pipe, and was accustomed to better quality tobacco from the start having smoked cigarettes rolled from quality Dutch tobaccos and of course, fine cigars from Davidoff.

That being said, I think the flavor profiles that I am used to have prejudiced me because I cannot for the life of me understand why anyone would smoke Prince Albert.

The tobacco is cased with something harsh and chemical tasting. The predominate flavor is akin to the odor of 'Playdough'. The tobaccos used are of inferior quality and would not be good even if the topping were not used. I can't even begin to describe how nasty this weed is. And 'weed' is the proper word for this stuff. You might as well go out in the yard and scrap some grass clippings off the bottom of your lawnmower, I'm positive that more satisfaction would result.

If this is one of the best drugstore blends out there, then I can forego any further experimentation on this level. It would only be a waste of money and time.

Nostalgia can be a tricky thing for people. Memories are often more about the details one cannot remember than the things one does remember. This is a prime example of that. Grandpa may have smoked this, but your love and respect of him does not make this tobacco any better than what it is in reality.

Not everything old is good, but this old standby certainly is. Prince Albert is not the champagne of pipe tobacco blends. But it is, perhaps, the morning cup of coffee. The taste is mild, not overbearing or cheap, and the nicotine load is light-to-moderate. It is easy to pack and light, and it stays lit to the bottom. I don't tire of it, returning to it again and again.

The taste is burley, even and quite plain. After smoking stronger, more distinctive blends I enjoy coming back to the Prince for a breather.

Prince Albert… First off, you should not judge any blend on one or two bowls smoked with random care. Give this stuff a change, with good technique, deserving any fine tobacco. Once into a solid burn, I find flavor nuances unlike any other so called straight burley. Probably because the Prince is not a straight burley after all. My pallet detects something else, low keyed, but their. Try it real slow and easy and see for yourself. Straight burley, I think not. One of my all time favorite, go to smokes.

I remember the great Prince. He was a tall, slender man of a gentle age. His attitude was that of a jolly fat man, however he wasnt large at all. Because of all the tobacco he consumed and occupied his time with, his appetite was rather stunted. The great Prince always found himself with a cane and many times fashioned his top hat and a large flower on his breast pocket. The combination of these three aesthetic apparel items, always attracted to him female attention. What can be said? The man had a weakness for women. Which is why he expressed his reasons for never marrying; he never wanted to disappoint a wife and child with the unpleasantness of infidelity. Constantly the man would bring me along on many of his hazy, smoke filled adventures amongst the brothels. Albert had a way with the women, even at such a gentle age. He was just as successful in bed as he was in business.

He had been able to use his status a handsome young prince, to gain notoriety amongst not only the nobility, but also amongst the common folk. He loved women of the common folk, especially women with large posteriors, this led him through forbidden doors to promiscuous ventures with women of the darker complexion. To interracial scandal. Oh, Albert, You really were disheveled fox when it came to women.

At one point, Albert had become so enthralled in one woman, hailing from the Caribbeans. She was a practiced witch in the religion of voodoo. (He had planted his seed within her, hence producing a baby. They named him Middleton.) Their practices were rather uncouth, and quite frankly shocking. One day, Albert had disclosed, in confidence to me some of the rituals of the voodoo practice he had become wrapped up in. One of the rituals he had discussed with me had involved 2 slaughtered swine and an artificial phallus to say the least.

Albert's behavior became quite unorthodox until he reached his death bed 16 years later. Yet despite his sporadic behavior, he managed to maintain his image amongst the people, surprisingly enough, the upper class nobility of the very judgmental Victorian era people. On his death bed, he expressed to me his wishes to maintain the company's image and dedication to premium pipe tobacco. Yet, upon his death, his company was handed over to his milano, half-breed, muggle son. The son would later ruin the company by changing the name from "Prince Albert", a name of dignity and honor, to "Middleton" a name of disgust and of low character. He would also ruin the company by replacing the eloquent pipe tobacco with cheap fluted tip cigars. Just like his uncircumcised phallitic manhood.

What happened to this man was a travesty, when they released his old recipe back onto the market, I was enthused to see it once again. Yet the taste was forever tainted by a past full of bitter memories. Now all will know how one man had it all and lost it all. Rest in Peace, Mighty Prince Albert.

I like PA, For me it packed and smoked well, I do like the taste, For me it has a slight sweet taste and the burley comes through on a good note, It can bite a little if smoked to quickly, the room note is not so bad either, To me it smells better than a cigarette and I smoke those to. If you like burley then Im sure you will like Prince Albert.

PA is an unpretentious, straightahead burley with some slight chocolate aroma. I think your enjoyment depends on the bowl in which the Prince is enjoyed. My last smoke was in a large Boswell apple, but it's been delicious in my english estates (BBB, Sasieni, Mayfair.)

My only quibble with the Prince is that, even with sipping, it burns a little fast. I enjoy this American Classic as a change of pace from my usual VA/PERS.

For the high dollar "hobby" pipe smoker with his or her $300 dollar pipe's and latest and greatest quasi ultra super blended aromatic. Prince Albert probably is not gonna wow you. But for us people with addiction....OTC's are awesome. :)

I was a thieving kid and at 16 i stole two corn cobs my dad had. That he quit using. And a friend and i would go and take his dads Prince Albert out of the big can. We thought we were big stuff smoking. But anyhow it kinda stuck with me and him.

I had tried allot of the expensive house blends around where im at and tried a few of the tins of MacBarens and others. But i tended to stay with Prince Albert and Carter Hall. Their easy blends and a all day pipe smoker tends to like them best. Their designed for that purpose.

My first pipe tobacco, and one of my favorites. Definitely one to keep on hand either for everyday smoking or for blending. I smoke PA straight or use it to beef up a very mild smoke. Can be used for cigarettes as well but much prefer this in a pipe. Inexpensive, a decent smoke, and a great blender, it's hard not to like the Prince!

I decided to try PA based on the reviews here and upon learning it was what my grandfather smoked for years. Then, I went out on a limb and purchased an entire tub. I am pleased to report that I have absolutley no regrets. I have hardly smoked anything else for the last two weeks. As others have said, it may have a slight topping, whether its anise or coffee or what, it does have a unique tin note. The flavor while smoking is not detectable, just a good nutty taste and aroma. I get zero bite from this, it's just good everytime. This would be a solid three stars at any price, but for what it costs, this has to get four. I don't know if I would have liked this as much a few years ago, but I was ready for now, and it will likely become the cornerstone of my rotation. Try it.

Right out of the gate, I rate Prince Albert, Four Stars. Nice flavor, mild casing of Anise, truly nice blending. The aromatics are some of the best in the pipe smoking world. My wife, an Anti-Smoking Nazi, doesn't complain (and that, is a rare thing!). The taste is nice, but if sipped, it's even better. Years and years this was and continues to be my bedrock. Both of my Grandfathers smoked Prince Albert, and I aquired the taste for Lucky Strikes and cigars with Ligero, from this (quite literal) lifelong accompaniment with Prince Albert. I Highly Recommend this tobacco, and advise one to dry it out a bit, and it gets even better as a dry, rather than moist, product.

Have ya tried them all, and not tried this old timey baccy yet? Good Old Prince Albert, Queen Victoria's husband. Just like him this tobacco dosen't get as much attention as the others. All that said it doesn't mean this is rag weed at all, for this is American White Burley. You've seen it growing thru Kentucky and Tennessee. It's quite simple in nature and taste. It is very rewarding in nicotene, and nutty in flavour. Packs easy and if you have a rolling paper left over from college, roll yourself a cigarette with it. There is no bite, it wll not goop up your pipe, lights easy,and smokes to the bottom leaving a fine grey ask. Great stuff!

I would look down my nose at the people who smoked PA,CH,et. al. while I was micro-waving my mouth w/B&M aromatics before I learned how to smoke. Tried a pouch last year and was wondering what do people see in this. Mixed some with Paladin Black Cherry and found it agreeable. Finally got a tub & the rest is history. Plain no nonsense everyday,solace smoke. I find it's like your most comfortable pair of broken in jeans or tennis you can't wait to get into after work or for the weekend. This is one of my favorites and I smoke everything. This I would consider plain bottom floor burley before they start adding flavorings,CH,then experimenting with other flavorings and cut of leaf,Butternut and Classic Burley Kake, then adding other tobaccos for interest,Va. Gentleman, et al.After smoking all day and my mouth is tired I always smoke this to remind me of comfort and non-pretentiousness. Tastes and burns great dry or right out of the tub. I would suggest trying the tub. That opened up the flavor for me. I have two empty tubs and whenever I get down to 1/4 tub I get nervous and get another one. Briar, Meer or Cob, makes no difference which to me is the true test of a good tobacco. Love in the mornings on weekends w/tea,during the day,and night. take your time to develop maturationally (Funn Dictionary) to appreciate it. Use of pipe cleaners will eliminate the end of bowl bitterness many people complain about. One of the Classics!!

Ah, the good prince. This is likely the first tobacco I ever tried back in the day. Very simple and pleasant. I still smoke it after more than 30 years. A bit on the mild side it doesn't coat my mouth with crap I can taste two hours later. The only downfall is of course the burley bitters near the end. Hey, it's burley! Live with it!

Thanks to Clarkus that has given me this excellent tobacco. I'm pleasantly impressed by this classic: PA is a mild and no complex Burley with an uncontrived aroma of chocolate, a gentle nutty flavor and a subtle and very pleasant woodiness never harsh nor tannic. It's easy to fill, smoke smooth and enough cool, it doesn't bites the tongue and leaves only dry ash and a pleasant room note.

For Middleton folks: dear Sirs, I know that PA was available here in Italy up to the sixties, why not again?

It definitly took me more than one bowl to love this. I am not sure if it was letting it sit up for a few weeks, but I am smoking a bowl of it now and it is wonderful. It gives me a wave of nostalgia of a time that I did not even experience. I spilled the whole damn pouch on my lap though, so I have to buy more.

I am comforted to know that if the 775% tax increase goes through, PA will probably be a reliable source for when we have to spend a weeks pay on tobacco.

Upon lighting and heavy puffing, one can taste a bit of what seems to be humectant or preservative, but if one smokes it easily, its buttery, nutty taste will never fail to satisfy. Load up your favorite pipe, sit down, and experience a bit of history.

Anyway, it is a great mild and soft smoke. This stuff burns great, even right out of the pouch. I would describe the aroma as a subtle mixture of fruit and nuts, a perfect compliment to the natural tobacco flavor. I would say that this is how an aromatic should be, subtle. Furthermore, the best benefit is the pleasant aroma surrounding you... and not bothering others.

About eight months ago I picked up a tub of PA. Upon opening it I got an aroma of berries, but it smokes different. It has a sweet mild nutty taste. It burns evenly and stays lit easily. I like to smoke different tobaccos, but I find myself coming back to PA. I smoke it daily. Have you ever heard of comfort food? Well, if there is such a thing as comfort tobacco, then this one is it for me.

I picked PA for my first review because it was the very first tobacco I ever had.I liked it well enough to keep up with the pipe for all these years.But the Prince and me parted ways ,years ago.No hard feelings,at least on my part,but I had a lot of learning and exploring to do.Last year I saw my old friend in a shop and we became friends all over again.The Prince may be of Royal birth,but deep down he is just a good and comforting country lad at heart.So it is with this pipe tobacco.Nothing fancy,just comfort and ease.Good nutty flavor,and no mess.Give it a try.It won't cost a fortune if you find you don't care for it,and you just might like it.I keep a tub on the shelf for when the mood strikes.By no means an everyday smoke for me,but maybe for you.A worthy Hall Of Fame tobacco if ever there was.

Great drugstore tobacco. No flavoring add, just burley. I like TOBACCO, not candy and flavorings. This is a great all day blend in a cob pipe. If you are looking for a cheap all day blend give this a try.

Ok I have primarily become a drugstore blend smoker because there is no tobacconist within a 150+ mile radius,so here is the famous and classic Prince Albert at RiteAid. Tried a bowl, and like all other drugstore smokes it has the harsh bite when lighting it, and it lit and stayed lit very easily. but the worst for me was the taste. I was smoking a beefed up cig in a pouch, what the hell? I hate the taste of cigarettes, i don't mind burley tobacco but this was just disappointing to me. the room note was good, at least it didn't smell like a cancer stick so i guess there is a plus, but i don't really recommend it all that much, I would say its better than Half$Half but not by much, i would honestly rather smoke Captain Black.

I mean this is a good smoke to those who likes this, but it just doesn't do it for me.

(6/14/10) ok this is a review edit, so I've been smokin Dunhill's Early Morning Pipe for the past 6 months now, and i love it. Then all the sudden it got really hot outside and now i can only enjoy this tobacco literally in the morning. I have been telling my friends i wanted a new tobacco that i could smoke all day. Low and Behold i received that huge red tub of burley as a gift. I was going to throw up!! then i opened it and took a wiff and... was impressed. I had first only tried the pouches and the tub is 100 times different. Smelled very nutty with a hint of whiskey. tasted very mild, not much bite. i was actually okay with it. blew me away. PA is okay!

This is my first review. I am new to the hobby. I do enjoy (very much) 2 of the OTCs I have and I love a honey aromatic I found at a local shop. I do not like reviewers that do not like anything, seems like the tobacco does not have a chance. That being said I understand why so many like this "blend". It is the same reason that there are so many more cigarette smokers than pipe smokers. They want cheap fast tasteless nicotine. PA is cost effective. I have found a way to make it even more affordable. Walk around after a ball game and pick up all of the cigarette butts and squeeze the remaining tobacco into your "soft luxury pouch" with 3 ground up Cheerios and Ta-Da a new pouch of PA! No one will be able to tell not even you.

Good solid basic Burley, a mild nuttiness but little flavour to the smoke...think I prefer Carter Hall with it's sweetness to this but I am happy to work my way through my tub. Seems very good to break in a new pipe with and I've already used it to add to some of my own blends. A good solid 3 stars.

One of my all time favs! PA is one great old burley that stands the test of not all times, but my time since smoking pipe tobacco.It is exactly to me anyhow, what it says on the label! call it what you will.I've tried expensives,& others at this great price & to me PA is at the top of my favs list! I love that burley smell in the pouch or tub But the tastse & Pleasure of this Is even better.Reliable & never ever tiring to me. Burns great & even, No bite to me at all.Unfortunately money is a factor to me these days, & this is worth more than the cheap price its stayed at!If this was the only pipe tobacco in the history of tobacco, I'd be happy with it forever I believe.It has a good relaxing feeling to the whole pipe session, if you will, It delivers just the right amount of nicotine pleasure for me, I dont like a major nico rush that will make me smoke less of a blend, I may be weak to nicotine as some may prefer just a nicotine strength for the main factor. It gives off alot of smoke & very pleasant as never a relight, so you can kick back & take at ease to the quiet time in the early morning or at night,But anytime I enjoy this! I like a wide variety of blends & aromas. I like having a good rotation of all types of blends for my diffent tastses at a time I crave a certain smoke, But PA is always in my home. If you are new to the enjoyment of pipe tobacco & have not tried good ole red prince.. get a pouch , its a great price & everywhere!My BOTTOM LINE- I love PA ! as so many others do.A NOTE ON ROOM NOTE...does not smell as good as it is! But The room note is no factor to me, actually I dont notice myself much of any aroma from it, so I'll say tolerable?

RELIABLE! PA is smooth, nutty, not complex, no bite, just good straight forward burley flavor at a great price. At times I question why I knock my brains out searching for that "holy grail" blend when PA is consistantly satisfying and available anywhere. My father once told me that there are two types of pipe tobacco, good and bad, and PA is very good. So, keep it simple, enjoy the experience, and don't become preoccupied with finding the "perfect" tobacco blend. PA and Mixture 965 (now Altadis 965 match until Dunhill returns) cover my needs! ENJOY

Greatings, brothers and sisters of the briar. Price Albert has been an american mainstay for generations now. The american burly used is not exactly top shelf, however I find that this is most dependable smoke, reasonable in cost, and rewarding. Isnt this the point of our wonderful hobbie? PA is consistent, smooth,leaves a very slight sweet taste on the palet and I have never experianced any bite. In a new briar, carefull breakin makes for a very well behaved pipe, ready for more advanced tobbacos. I smoke PA daily, my wife as well of others love the aroma. In this day of shrinking incomes, I find PA to be a blessing. Good OTC tobacco and easy to find, I find the can far fresher and having slightly grassy undertones, with a rasin choloate note. With 100 years plus of the Prince, he has aged gracefully and has remained true to a multitude of followers.....A true prince. Give PA a try, sit back, relax, and enjoy, let the Prince take you to a far simpler time.

I gave this one 4 stars, and with good reason. It's a very smooth Burley, no bite to speak of, and has a really great taste. I've always liked Carter Hall, but CH is definitely sweeter. This stuff just seems to be a straight forward Burley. If it has a casing, it isn't much to speak of. This is the first time I've smoked this blend, and I have been enjoying it immensely. I'd like to see if the tub's flavor is different from the pouch I bought? Nothing goopy, just a fine grey ash. No re-lights either. Maybe our Grandpa's knew a good thing after all!

Here's an update for ya. I bought some G.L. Pease Odyssey and didn't care for the Latakia overkill. But add a pinch to some P.A. and you get a very satisfying smoke

While the king was involved with taking care of the affairs of the court, the prince was busy looking for a way to give the royals and loyal subjects a means of enjoyment for those times of relaxation after a hard days work had ended. The prince being a wise young man knew that all work and no play gave men a feeling of sadness and incompleteness. His hard work and dedication to these efforts was rewarded greatly with the creation of a special blend of pipe smoking tobacco that was soon to become a standard the world over!

Albert had a dream, that finally came to fruition the day his royal tobacco tasters filled their pipes with this unique smoking mixture and found themselves overcome with delight and wonder! The young prince then knew his labor of love and commitment was worth the time and effort he'd put forth. A new and wonderful blend was born!! "Hail to the prince" they all roared.

Prince Albert is a straight forward burley blend that is easy to smoke in every way. The aroma shouts of days past when the world was at peace as was the hearts of men. Times when people enjoyed the simple things in life. Withstanding the test of time, this blend will go on to be a favorite of men and women for years to come! How can it not, for those things born in simplicity and love will endure!!

I have to admit that I was a bit apprehensive about trying PA based on the reviews I had read that mentioned a stale cigarette smell and flavor.

However, I did eventually try it and I was glad that I did. PA is a simple burley, a bit stronger than CH (in a good way), and is easy to smoke.

I gave it 4 stars based on the following four reasons: it has a great flavor with no bite, it's easy to pack, it stays lit easily, and it's a classic blend.

I would suggest that anybody new to pipe smoking (and who enjoy burley blends) definitely try this blend at some point. It is a timeless classic and doesn't disappoint. (A lot of people like it mixed 50/50 with CH and I'd like to try that at some point as well).

Price Albert does not pretend to be anything but a nice smoking pipe tobacco, and it is. It is not Gourmet English, Larry's Blend, or Virginia Flake, but it packs well smokes well and taste good. I did not find any bite. To paraphrase one reviewer, PA does not take a lot of concentration. It is a pleasant smoke. If one considers the price it is a great blend. I do indeed remember the pocket tins, they were, I think, better for rolling your own than packing a pipe!

One of the nice things about drug store blends is typically, they are great for inattentive smoking. They pack and light effortlessly straight out of the pouch and stay lit. The challenging part for me is finding a blend that doesn't taste raspy and chemically or dry out my mouth.

I got a pouch of PA this morning at Wally World for $3.45 and puffed it all day in a starter pipe as I putzed around the yard. It is a very mellow and pleasant tobacco. There is not one thing I do not like about it. There is just a hint of sweetness to it along with a slightly sweet after taste. The flavor doesn't come ravishing through and leave your lips smacking like some of the more exotic English Balkan blends but that is OK. Too much of a good thing can be bad. PA is something I can indulge in without moderation. I like it better than many of the local B&M aromatic bulk blends I've tried.

I doubt this pouch will last long and I'll probably order a tub for as enjoyable and inexpensive as it is.

The pinnacle of pipe tobacco. Prince Albert is the best burly and smokes great. I tried several pouches with good results, then I got the 14oz tub and it got even better. The best tobacco for the fact the everyone associates it with pipe smoking. This is what I use to break in my pipes and I recommend it to anyone that is just starting out with pipe smoking. It has a nutty smell with a hint of berries that I find so great. After a smoke it does not gunk up my pipes. The pipe cleaner came out almost clean after the second time. I love it and it should be number one in the hall of fame

Update A couple of years ago I left a pouch of PA out, during the winter with low indoor humidity, for a week. It never really dried out (as others have noted). Now for the first time since I've been smoking the stuff (at least 30 yrs) I got a tub and after leaving the lid off a bit it actually is dry to the touch. It smokes MUCH better that way. Flavor is enhanced. Smokes slower. The bitter finish is much reduced. Yeah it's a simpler flavor but very satisfying. Reliable and comfortable as an old pair of slippers. And for the first time my SO asked, without prompting, "What was that stuff you were smoking this morning. It smelled good!" I'm bumping this up a star. Previous review follows:

I first smoked this blend in college, a long time ago. All of my dorm mates were from small farming communities in the midwest and nearly everyone I knew then who smoked a pipe had a pouch or tin of this around. Many of them had grandfathers and fathers who also smoked it.

Off and on I've smoked this over the years. And just recently I picked up a pouch at the grocery store to break in my new McArthur cob. I filled the "bowl" up to the brim without any tamping, and just light it up. This is a simple, no frills burley. For the life of me I can't find any topping, just a tobacco smell both in the pouch and when lit. It's not quite as smooth and a little plainer than Kentucky Club. It can smoke a little hot and I've learned to take care with it. When I want something basic for those times when I'm busy puttering, this ain't bad at all. It does take me back to a simpler time.

I had a partner who smoked this exclusively and I can say that the room note is that of the old fashioned burleys, pleasant and inoffensive. One of the better grocery store blends. For lovers of simple burley, this is a must try. And you can't beat the price.

Like pretty-much everyone else who enjoys PA, I appreciate it's combination of satisfaction and value. This is an easy-going smoke that, in my opinion, is much better than most tobacconists' bulk offerings. It is very easy on the tongue, very satisfying to the smoke bone, and the flavor, while not very complex, brings to my mind the taste of chocolate-covered graham crackers. The aroma of PA is what I, since early childhood, associated with the aroma of pipes, period. Thus, my opinion may be colored by fond memories. However, the millions of smokers who have enjoyed this blend over its 100+ years of existance can't all be wrong. I'd highly recommend this tobacco in particular to cigarette smokers wishing to trade habits. I wish I'd tried this blend, as well as Carter Hall, back when I was experimenting with the pipe as a high school student. Had I done so, my early experience would have been much more pleasing and I may have abandoned the coffin nails way back then. Why didn't I? Simple snobbery, that's why. I, who knew nothing about pipes or smoking tobaccos, judged PA to be beneath my dignity since it was "drug store tobacco". I'm glad that I found this site and, on the basis of so many favorable reviews, I finally tried PA. Since then, I've decided to abandon snobbery.

The great thing about this site is that we learn from others. Having been a pipe smoker on/off for 20 years I took out the Briar again 3 months ago. The Virginia and Cavendish I had been smoking were wearing thin, so I looked for something new and cheap to try. For $2.19 I found my Burly friend the Prince under my nose at the local drug store. He slowly helped ease Dr. Bradley into weekend work only.

This is what I had been waiting for. Smooth,no bite and a moderate N kick. I also enjoy mixing in a little Virginia flake or maybe some Cavendish for fun. A good smoke from the start to midway through, then time to dump as it gets a little sour. A nice everyday tobacco, easy to find and at a great price.

Wonderful basic crimp cut burley. Smokes cool without bite. Others have praised it often and better than me, but wanted to register my ** for this much deserved first winner of ?hall of fame? status. It will tell you how long this has been a regular in my rotation when I admit that when I first started smoking this I purchased it in 1.5 oz. ?pocket tins? anyone remember those??

Its a rite of passage that everyone should endure. I had never tried it up to this point but, because of a recent conversation that I had with my grandmother I had to. It turns out that Prince Albert in a can was a vivid visual memory that my grandmother had, relating to my great grandfather. She describes him as a strong, raw-boned man. He worked hard, drank hard and lived only 57 years. He smoked prince albert. Drank boot legged moonshine and, ate anything. He both rolled and piped PA. I had to try it in an attempt to get close to the man in the stories. This burley compliments my grandmother's decription of my great grandfather. Plain dressed and raw-boned. The flavor is americana. PA gets the job done but doesn't taste great, just like great grandad's moonshine. It is nutty, sweet, and faintly sour. Burns perfect with no fuss. I think of the days of an agricultural existence in the south. Where a man wipes a solution of sweat and Georgia clay from his brow, replaces his salt-ring laced worn wool hat and climps the one or two steps lurching towards his broken home. He hears the abrasive jingle of a lid releasing from a mason jar of white liquor. He takes a a good swig, puts the jar down and lights up his pipe. Though he has nothing, he has everything. To me this is Prince Albert.

I'm upgrading this a star. It's proven to be the most reliable smoke I've ever placed in my pipe. It's my go to blend, all day blend and blend I like when I don't know what I want.

Original Review 2/10/09: This is my first review on here and I don't know if there's a lot I can add to PA but I will do my best. As a pipe smoker with not a whole lot of years under my belt I find it amusing that many of us tend to come back to the favorites of days past. We all look for reliability in some sense whether it's cars, women, friends and even pipe tobacco. PA is just that, reliable. It's an honest reliable smoke that is simple to light, simple to smoke and forgiving if your thoughts push you into puffing harder or softer than normal. I admit my bias since I tend to smoke mostly virginias and VAPERs but as of late the nutty burley in PA has a certain allure that brings me back again and again.

Is it mind blowing? No, but when you look for a reliable smoke then you're not looking for mind blowing. You're looking for comfort in what you know will be waiting for you when you strike that first, and usually only, match.

I got the "Luxury Pouch" at Wal Mart for $2.27. From the pouch I could almost detect what seemed like a faint apple topping. Others have mentioned chocolate and I wouldn't deny that based on their own senses. Upon lighting I was greeted with that familiar nutty taste that I'm quickly growing fond of in burley. My only regret is that is seems to burn much quicker than I am used to but this is based upon smoking a lot of flakes which burn VERY slowly. My pipe got a little warm but nothing I would be worried about. Based on all this I give it a solid 3 stars for being a decent smoke with a VERY decent price.

Our smoking forefathers were no idiots. I think we should take note of their wisdom and never write off "codger burleys."

This is one of a handful of tobaccos which smokes way beyond its price-point. I picked up a pouch of this and and one of Sir Walter Raleigh when I stopped into a little place to pick up some cobs. Total price for the two pouches and a trio of cobs? $14.20. Twenty minutes earlier I'd bought four tins of various things at a fancier (and cob-less) shop. Total price? $57 and change. (Which, as a northerner, is about half what I would pay in the land of Maple Leafs and Blue Jays, so I'm not complaining.)

If someone were to draw up a big price/quality ratio chart for all of the tobaccos on this board, this may well come out as the king of tobaccos. (The name change to 'King Albert' would, of course, cause an immediate decline in sales as reviewers would complain about how their unpretentious little Prince had changed somehow.)

I'd pretty much sworn off the cheap and cheerful blends of the past after trying vile Half & Half and viler still Borkum Riff Cherry Cavendish, but there was the Prince and the noble knight and I thought, ahhh what the heck.

I'm kind of glad the fancy place had no cobs because Prince Albert is a thoroughly decent Burley. Sure it's plain, short on intensity, and a little lacking in vigor. But it is also pleasant. There is a vaguely fruity topnote to the tobacco in the pouch, but the star here is the clean burning, mildly hazelnutty Burley.

I'm sure that this would bore me all the way down to my socks if it was all that was available. But it isn't all that's available. It makes a nice little change of pace from all that porn star intensity I normally crave. It's kind of like making out under the covers, gentle, tender, quiet, familiar.

My one complaint: I'm not much of a fan of the thoroughly cigarette-ish room note, I have to say.

My Great Uncle smoked this over 50 years ago. I used to Love to see him and smell as he was smoking it, and open up his can and smell the aroma. He was the one he got me into pipe smoking. I will always remember him when I smoke this Blend.

Burns straight down to an gray ash, easy to light and stay lit. Lite up and go back in time for a spell.

I took a pouch of this to a recent pipe club meeting. Several people filled up and commented on how much they enjoyed the tobacco. In my 27 years of smoking a pipe I'd never tried Prince Albert; I'd always turned my nose up at this pedestrian drugstore blend. There is no complexity here, just good burley taste and no bite.

To enjoy Prince Albert is to have a proper perspective. First of all, let me say that my dad doesn't smoke this. My Grandfather didn't smoke and I have no way of knowing what my Great Grandfathers did. however, I am a fan of a lot of things nostalgic like Old Time Radio. I also love this computer age we are in. I feel that this qualifies me to speak on the Prince with very little bias. I tried this blend when I was 18 and hated it. It has been 20 years and I now love it. This is a pure Burley tobacco. Black Cavendish smokers and English smokers must understand that. I am more of a Black Cavendish smoker and I had to come to grips with the above. I mean, when one smokes stuff that is heavily cased, natural tobacco can be hard to take. And, coming from the other direction, an English smoker probably finds the blend to be too simple. Prince Albert is a great all day smoke. It doesn't take all day to finish a bowl and you get a pretty good nicotine charge. The aroma does have a hint of chocolate, but don't think that this is a chocolate blend. It is simple Burley at it's best. The best way to smoke the Prince is in a cob. Most cobs hold just enough for a good smoke. I know that there are many on this site with $300.00 pipes and $50.00 per pound tobacco that will not understand this kind of thing. This tobacco is for the working man and a cob or a small faithful brier that has been propperly seasoned with the little man in the red pouch. There are many other Burley tobaccos that are much higher in price, but the Prince can still stand toe to toe with any of them. I am simply a guy who happened on this brand and I love it. I can understand the passion that one finds on this review page. I have no nostalgia for it. I just love the taste and the honest aroma that seems to speak of simple pleasure rather than bloated complexity. While we're on the subject, some have said that the aroma is like a cigarette. The aroma is nutty and tobacco-filled. Stand next to someone smoking a Marlboro and stand next to a guy with a little Prince in the bowl and you'll not make that same mistake. In short, load up and smoke. You, too, will be a believer and reach for this time and time again. 11/24/08 Well, I finally got myself an actual tub of the Prince. The first thing to note is the lack of topping when you open it. The aroma is of natural Burley. The cut is the same and the moisture level is a bit higher than the pouch. The odd thing is that the tobacco seems to burn a little faster than the pouch, as well. The taste is darker than the pouch and more full of Burley goodness. This is definitely an afternoon smoke while the pouch form is more for the morning. I will definitely buy this one again. I have also been trying a number of Tobacco store Burleys and the tub, for sure, stands toe to toe with any of them. In fact, when price is factored in, Prince Albert in the tub can vanquish most of it's foes. Buy it! Try it! You'll love it!

05/23/2008 With over 100 reviews of Prince Albert to date, add my vote to the chorus of recommendations. Nothing in life gets much better than the morning paper, a cup of coffee, and a bowl of P.A.

It has a great, uncomplicated tobacco flavor with a nut-like character and minimal sweetness. It develops a pleasant, very gentle salinity that keeps me coming back for more. It burns cleanly to the bottom of the bowl every time, leaving only dry gray ash ...and a craving for just one more puff.

11/17/2008 FYI: I stumbled upon this tidbit of information and thought you'd like to know...

According to tobacco.org's "Tobacco Timeline -- NOTES" author Gene Borio states, in a news item dated 1913, that Prince Albert is a blend of 3 tobaccos: Piedmont Bright, a flavored and sweetened Burley from Kentucky, and 10% Turkish leaf.

Very glad to see PA at the top of the heap in the Hall of Fame. My daily smoke is a bit more expensive 'designer burley' bought via the internet but it is nice to know I can stop nearly anywhere and get a can of PA. The grand old man of American tobac. Update: The heck with the above mentioned 'designer burley' @ $43 a lb. I've been smoking PA exclusively for two months and enjoy it every bit as much as the expensive blend.

Ah, the classic Prince Albert pipe tobacco what can I say about this delightful blend to help you buy this 'Drugstore Blend'? nothing really.All I can say is this tobacco is a very elelgant burley tobacco.No casing/topping is detected..just smooth and rich burley smoking is rewarded with thick white clouds of smoke and a dry pipe.You will notice the tobacco does bear a slight nutty character to the tobacco which is common among burley.I'm mostly a aromatics fan but I feel that Prince Albert is a secret treasure in the realm of pipe tobacco that has been swept under the carpet over the years by many blends that feature orientals or latakia.This OTC Drugstore will always remain one of my favorites.

After its recent induction into the hall of fame, I could not resist buying up a tub of this stuff, along with a Missouri Meerschaum corncob pipe at the drug store. There was an elderly man in line behind me from the deep south who commented favorably on my purchase, and then decided to buy a tub of his own: he had a pretty trustworthy face so I figured I was in for a treat, but with a bit of trepidation: twenty bucks for a pound of tobacco and a pipe? I fired it up out behind my workplace and I must admit I now understand why this made the hall of fame. Great taste, great burn, medium strength...yum! The pipe was a little harsh as it is brand new and I could taste burning wood towards the bottom, but what the hell, it cost me like a buck...highly recommended, only I'll have to see if this pipe breaks in a bit better before recommending it.

I smoked aromatics for my first few months of pipe smoking. I recently decided to try Half and Half and Prince Albert. Half and Half was not for me. I am a fairly new pipe smoker about 1 year now, so I am no expert but I liked Prince Albert a lot. I enjoy the tobacco taste and the consistency. It has added a new level of enjoyment to pipe smoking for me. The price is unbeatable and I do not have to travel out of town or order it so for me it is for now my pipe tobacco of choice.

Smoking this by itself is uneventful - just plain old burley. This is probably the least "messed with" "Drug Store" brand around. Personally, I find it has the least detectable flavorings of most of it's ilk.

I use Prince Albert as a base tobacco by which to cut "souped up" tobaccos such as P+C's "Butternut Burley". It tends to mellow those types of aromatics out - to the benefit of both tobaccos.

Mix 2 parts prince Albert to 1 part Butternut Burley and you have an all day, every day good smoke. I don't often smoke PA by itself any more but I do buy it regularly for cutting purposes.

Update: Recently I started smoking PA by itself again and find I am back to enjoying it quite a bit! So it is up to 3 stars for me.

Final Update: I smoke this everyday now. All you have to do is put it in your pipe and smoke it - a novel idea for a tobacco! It has reached the 4 star status for me!!

Prince Albert comes in either a pouch-in-box or plastic tub. It?s a mild flavored burley tobacco with a sweet topping that seems to effect the smell and add very little to the taste.

Prince Albert has the best burning characteristics of any pipe tobacco that I have smoked. Once lit the tobacco burns without attention and scarcely any puffing. It always reduces to a fine white ash and has never bit my tongue. I suspect that it?s imposable to have this bite ones tongue.

Prince Albert has the nut-type flavor associated with straight burley tobaccos. As I mentioned earlier there is a sweet sugar-water type toping. This topping is not nearly strong enough to compare Prince Albert to an aromatic tobacco. It can get a little sour if puffed really hard; however, I often produce billowing clouds of tobacco smoke without negative effect.

I rolled a cigarette on a hunch. As an occasional cigarette smoker I can write it actually tastes better than many roll-your-own tobacco blends.

I read this family of straight burleys referred to as ?codger burleys,? or the non-pejorative ?American? style. I thought they were too cheep ? or hideous like Captain Black ? and didn?t try them for years. Well, I was wrong. These tobaccos are quite good even if they are mild. Of the ones I?ve tried, Prince Albert is the best. I keep this tobacco around, and smoke it in giant-bowled pipes while watching a movie or playing a video game.

For most of the folks that might read this review, I can?t think of a tobacco I would recommend you try more than Prince Albert. This tobacco is neither sweetly, nor exotically, flavored. It is straight-forward, simple, and very, very inexpensive. Add a pouch to your next internet or tobacco store basket; I all but guarantee you won?t hate it, you might like it, and you won?t spend more than $1.50 an ounce!

I like old fashioned things in life. I shave with a mug, brush, and shaving soap. I carry a pocketwatch instead of wearing a wristwatch. I like Prince Albert.

Prince Albert is plain old fasioned burley. It has a great burley taste and never seems to burn hot or bite the tongue. It provides lots of smoke, packs easily, lights easily, and doesn't need a lot of relights. To me, it is a wonderful morning smoke with a cup of hot black coffee. Prince Albert is an inexpensive tobacco, so if you happen not to like it, it hasn't cost you a bundle. I give Prince Albert 4 stars.

My only concern is that I not sell this wonderfully classic tobacco short in my review. I've smoked a pipe only a few years, and have run the usual gamut of recommendations, typically involving bitey aromatics or Englishes that are just too powerful for a novice. Thank heaven I made it to the Prince!

Along with companion brand Carter Hall, this was where I truly settled into enjoying my daily pipe. This stuff is trouble-free, with rich burley flavor, no-nonsense packing, big creamy plumes of smoke, and no bite issues at all. The taste is,I suppose, enhanced by some kind of light topping, but the flavor is just the tobacco without anything else in the way. The sort of chopped-up ribbon cut gravity-fills nicely, and a bowlful of this is usually a one-match affair. I only wish it still came in the metal "pocket tins," a nice one of which I acquired at a yard sale (it cleaned up beautifully, and stands displayed by my pipe rack). The wisdom seems to be that the tubs are better than the pouches, but I've only had the 1.5 oz. pouch. Hard to imagine it getting much better. Long live Prince Albert. With other brands going by the wayside, may this always be available.

I recommend this for breaking in pipes and a now and again easy smoke. It is mild, doesn't burn your mouth off your face, it's easy to get and fairly cheap. Best drugstore blend I have had. (only one I smoke!) It has very little nicotine and doesn't seem to turn people off by the smell. Seems OK in public.

Prince Albert along with Carter hall is a good brand to have around. It isn't an overly cased smoke, it's not harsh and burns well. Sometimes I like this better than carter hall as it has less of a topping in my opinion. Both Carter Hall and Prince Albert are blends that are a good alternative when your not sure what you want to smoke or for those times when a simple smoke is best. When factoring in the price and availability there really isn't any reason not to recomend Prince Albert.

Some people on this board claim that this is cigarette tobacco, to those people I ask: have you ever smoked a cigarette? While it may be true that you could probably roll some pretty nice cigarettes out of this stuff (I haven't tried) this is definetely not as harsh.

The blend is very pleasant and it has the right amount of flavor and nicotine. There is definetely some kind of casing but it is very very mild (almost undetectable) and all it does is bring out the tobacco flavor.

Another plus is that it is readily available; I don't have to order it online and wait days to have it delivered, I can simply run to the store and get a 14oz. tub for 20 bucks.

There was one reviewer here who said that if this blend was 10 bucks per oz. it would have a much better audience and I will have to agree. I think there are just too many people who bash it simply because it is cheaper than other blends and sold at grocery stores.

I highly recommend that you at least try a pouch. If some of the bad reviews make you wanna stay away from PA think about this: how many people do you know that smoke this stuff and only this stuff? how long has it been around? would it be around for this long (and everywhere) if it was as bad as some people make it sound?

UPDATE: This one too will survive the culling of the four star blends. How could it be otherwise? In nearly three years of smoking almost nothing but burley I've only found a couple I enjoy as much as the good Prince. In a world full of a confusing array of tobaccos, most more complex and more expensive, the Good Prince holds his own. For my taste, there are but a handful of tobaccos in the world that can compete and none that will defeat the Good Prince Albert. This is not only an American classic but an icon of the pipe smoking universe for the last (and probably next) 106 years. YMMV

UPDATE: 09/22/07 Two things I've learned over the last six months. First I'm a burleyphile. Once in a blue moon I'll smoke a bit of something else but generally I stay with my burley. You just can't beat it for smokeablity and just good satisfying (works every time) flavor. Secondly, I learned that Prince Albert is bar none the bomb. It seems I enjoy it a little more every time I smoke it. When I need variety I go to Edgeworth, Half and Half, or Carter Hall. Occasionally, I'll pick up a VA/PER and even less occasionally an English Blend and/or some of the C&D burley blends but far and away I seem to stay with codger burlies and it never seems to take me very long to be in the mood to kill another tub of Da Prince. This stuff rocks and probably would undoubtedly be my desert island blend. In fact, I'm enjoying some PA even as I type in a big Doodler ORIGNAL REVIEW Ladies and gentlemen, it's all about perspective. I'm constantly amazed at reviewers who review from the standpoint of, "I hate ______ and this was no exception" I'm not a big aromatic smoker and I know that about myself. Not that I won't occassionally pick one up and try it but I really am disinclined to review an aromatic unless it totally knocks my socks off. However, relative to aromatics my default setting is don't like it. As such, if I were to review these blends, I would probably trash some very good blends not necessarily because they suck but because basically I am not a huge fan or regular smoker of aromatics. To put it in food terms, no matter how much liver and onions you try to feed me I will invariably tell you this sucks, I don't like it. To a liver eater, there are few meals that can compare.

What I am is a huge fan and a regular smoker of is burley. And while there are a few of us who don't much care for the Prince, you won't find very many. Basically, this is the quintessential, old school American burley...period. Are there fancier, better quality burlies out there? Yes. Is there a better straight burley smoke out there? No, says I.

This is a well rounded blend busting at the seams with that old school burley flavor and aroma. It's a simple formula, a straight forward, affordable, enjoyable, efficeint, and delicious blue collar smoking experience. Persnickity yuppies need not apply and if you ain't a burley guy you just won't get it and probably never will. You can't argue with success and for over 100 years this blend has been a staple of American pipe smokers.

Yes, there are more complex burley blends out there and I enjoy them too (C&D, McBaren, etc.)but after all the hoopla you can pick up PA and everything goes back to basics. I like to eat steak but occassionally only a greasy cheeseburger will do. This is Prince Albert's niche. Not fancy, rather unassuming but delicious and very serviceable in every way. YMMV

I have purchased maybe countless pouches of this over the years. It holds certain promises: economical, readily available, simple. I can't honestly say that I have finished a single pouch. I'm sure it is fine for some; for me it just doesn't work.

UPDATE:

Well I'm here to eat some crow regarding this blend (something that I am becoming more and more familiar with). This is just plain burley and is really quite enjoyable if puffed moderately. Sometimes I get more enjoyment and relaxation by NOT expecting complexity and worrying about technique. PA is the same all the time.....it tastes the same bowl to bowl....and it delivers exactly what it promises.....a cool, uncomplicated smoke. If you think that this is something you could appreciate; this might be your ticket..

I've really come to love this tobacco! I first used it as my in-the-car tobacco for its tolerance of hard puffing--it won't bite! But over time it's come to be my favorite straight burley.

Smoke it slowly and the nuttiness really comes out! It lights easy and stays lit--perfect for a drive, or for an evening when you just don't feel like messing with a lighter. Burns down to a fine ash, too.

It doesn't have the sweetness of Carter hall, but it's nuttier.

There's nothing like trying expensive mail-order burley blends and discovering that a pouch of your favorite burley is the same price as a large Diet Coke.

They don't call him the Price for nothing. I like aromatics a lot, but PA is anything but that. This is mild relaxing tobacco. I had smoked many a homemade cigarette in my youth that was 75% PA and 25% Bull Duram. Rolled and smoked 50 a week at least for years. I quit smoking cigarettes or anything else thirty-five years and two wives ago so I forgot all about the Prince. In the last few years have begun enjoying the luxury of smoking a pipe. I finally got around to shaking hands with the Prince again after trying many of the expensive tins and boutique blends. I like a lot of those high dollar tins and boutique blends and will buy and smoke a bunch more, but I really have been relishing my winter evenings in the kingdom of the Prince. This is honest tobacco than doesn't choke you nor tease the palate with subtle flavors. It just tastes good, end of story. I will always keep a tub of the Prince on hand and am looking for just the right pipe to smoke it in. This has been so pleasant I now have Carter Hall in the sights. Dare I hope for two simple basic pleasures? There are those days when the simplest is simply the best. It's good to know that when I'm old and gray and my children have weasled all their in-heritage money out of me I will still have couch change for a satisfying smoke. Four Stars.

Good old burley folks - easy on your wallet, tongue, and pipes. Not much I can say that hasn't been said about this stuff already. It's cheap, consistent, and satisfying. Sure I like a Talbert Morta full of Penzance - sure I like a big Ardor stacked to the top with coins of Escudo - but 7 of 10 times I'll dip an old Kaywoodie into a tub of the prince because just nothing else will do. I only wish my review would bump this up to 4 stars where it belongs...

Oh how tastes change. 32+ years of pipe smoking; I've gone the Aromatic to Balkan/English and back again route. Nowadays, I smoke whatever I'm in the mood for. Prince Albert is your basic pleasing Burley pipe tobacco that will satisfy most smokers. Sure, it's an OTC brand, but don't be fooled by the tobacco snobs out there. I also smoke the tinned brands and enjoy them wholeheartedly. However, Prince Albert is still part of my daily rotation. Honest tobacco taste, no bite, easy packing, lighting, and burning; what else could you ask for? Even better, it's readily available in pouches or tubs. The price WILL NOT destroy your budget! I give the Prince two well-earned thumbs up!

Old review04/26/2005 ____________________________________________________________ Well this here PA is pretty good stuff, Its just plain ole, slightly sweet tasting, Burley, that wont stink up any of your briars.

It wont cook your tongue if you smoke alot in a day, and on occasion, I do just that.

I buy it in a 14 ounce tub, and pay $19.50 at a local store, that = about $1.40 an ounce, and to tell the truth. I believe it is way underpriced, compared to some "high end" tobacco's that Ive paid 3 times as much for, and enjoyed half as much.

I may not smoke this stuff for a week, than spend a day smoking nothing else

One thing is sure, I will always have some around. Our old Grandads were no fools, this has been around for generations and theres good reason. ________________________________________________________________ 8/5/07 Ive edited my review only to give this wonderful tobacco another star.This is one I never get tired of.I have many tobaccos in the cellar, but only a couple get the bowl time that the Prince gets.

PA is definitely a drug store tobacco from a company that mostly creates dismal blends. It's cheap and available everywhere. That being said, I'll submit the following.

It has become my favorite blend. I smoke it daily and that is not likely to change. If you like burley you will probably like this. It's dark brown burley with a nutty taste that smokes cool. Not the most expensive burley, but in comparison to the likes of Carter Hall and such it beats them hands down. Smoked properly, you'll get no bite out of it. In my opinion, it has a pleasant burley flavor that many expensive blends try to achieve but rarely do.

Try it with an open mind and no bias and you will be pleasantly surprised. In fact, it could end up being your favorite as well.

I just bought a couple of packages at Walmart the other day. The tobacco was fresh and moist, packed and smoked very well. No tongue bite, just good burley taste. Maybe quality control has improved. I updated to four stars over my original three.

A really good burley smoke.

Original review: Every so often I buy a package of the Prince. Quality control seems to be a problem, like most drugstore tobaccos of today. The latest pouch was positively great.

Great flavor, no bite, the nutty burley. Really a great pouch. Wonderful sitting on the porch with a cup of black coffee. Past pouches have not been as good. Will buy another pouch very soon, just to see how another batch fares.

06242007 It has been a long time since I smoked Prince Albert. I have been smoking Latakia blends as of late, but after reading some of the reviews on PA,I decided to buy a pouch and try it again. I had forgotten just how good this "drug store" burley blend could be. The moisture level was good, and PA loaded well and took to the match right out of the pouch. I found Prince Albert to be an even burning, cool smoking blend with absolutely no tongue bite. I enjoyed it in a small bowled Peterson, and then in a large bowl Peterson, and got the same result. A good, simple, basic blend that can be enjoyed anytime. A good starting place for the new pipester, and a good occassional smoke for the experienced brother or sister of the briar. This one will get a place in my regular rotation.

Update 4/17/2007 - This stuff is like moss on a rock in a rain forest: it really grows on you??..and fast! I must upgrade ?Prince Al? with four stars. PA is great by itself but I have also found it an ideal blend with which to cut other, stronger, predominantly burley blends that sometimes have a tendency to grow a little sharp and bitter in the latter third of the smoke. I have added anywhere from 1/4 to 1/2 PA to some of these ?offending? blends and it really ?smoothes thing out? and makes for a super great smoke!

And I would be remiss if I did not, once again, extol the outstanding burning qualities of PA. They are, in my opinion, the best, BY FAR, of any tobacco I have smoked! In other reviews at this site regarding the classic drug store and OTC blends, a few reviewers have alluded to the good burning qualities of some of these classic tobaccos making the claim they must contain an ?accelerant.? Who knows for sure but there is something at work here. To wit, I was smoking in my man cave over the weekend when the ?warden,? from the top of the stairs, yelled down wanting my help in rehanging some newly cleaned drapes in our bedroom. At the time, I was smoking one of these ?PA cut? blends. I put my pipe in a rest and when I came back 5 minutes later, there was still a ?fire in the hole? and it was a good one. My first ?repuff? was magical and delightful! PA is quite inexpensive to boot! Most Walmart stores carry the 14 ounce tubs for $17-$18 and this roughly equates to $1.25 an ounce. The real Prince Albert had a premature death in 1861 at the age of 42 but we can be thankful that ?his? tobacco lives on.

10/19/2005 - This blend always reminds me of the childhood prank of an earlier generation when some kid would phone the local drugstore and ask, ?Do you have Prince Albert in a can?? The response (in those days) was inevitably ?Yes, we do? at which point the kid would say ?Then let him out before he suffocates!? (or something along these lines) and hang up. Although PA no longer comes in a can (slender tin) nor is it available at most drug stores, I was pleasantly surprised by ?the Prince? in the pouch.

This is a nice, mild smoke with the classic nutty / grassy burley taste. No frills here. I do believe it is ever so lightly topped or lightly cased with something I can?t identify but it seems to enhance the flavor. It burns cool with no bite and, as others have pointed out, it has excellent burning qualities. This is a good smoke available at a not so ?princely? sum.

A cigarette is to be smoked. A cigar is to be enjoyed. A pipe is to be savored.

This has become my favorite tobacco. It has a satisfying burley taste. If smoked patiently, it won't bite. The tobacco in the pouches I've purchased felt like natural tobacco and did not leave any residue. It burned well, to a light gray ash and did not leave any sticky residue in the pipe. This product had more natural taste and feel than some of the more expensive products I've tried such as one of MacBaren's Burley tobacco blends. As with other tobacco, it is best when lit with a match. I've found using a lighter makes it taste like battery acid!

I also really like the room note of this tobacco.

Don't under-estimate this classic. I've enjoyed it much more than the premium-type blends I've tried.

Though definitely a drug store blend, with an acute ?industrialised? taste, Prince Albert is not that bad. For one thing it is not cased or doused with sauces of any kind. Secondly, it is cheap, and easy to pack and light. Sour? Only if smoked very quickly. It is not as tongue biting as Sir Walter Raleigh and it has a straightforward, unmistakeable Burley flavour and aroma. Not at all a great tobacco, in the sense that it is not elegant, refined or complex (compared to PA, Orlik Golden Sliced is majestic and imperial!). But compared to any drug store blend (save perhaps Capt. Black white label) it is very good and enjoyable. It can be smoked practically anywhere, anytime, and if you have to put out the pipe for whatever reason, there is no sorrow or regret. Simplicity at its best.

Best kept in an emergency kit in the cellar, together with a battery lantern, a knife, a couple of corn cob pipes, matches, and a flask of Jack Daniels.

Addendum (January 2007) It may be that I'm getting old, or maybe the fact that I can find this blend virtually anywhere (and always at an afforadable price)but somehow the Prince has really grown on me. It may be a bit monotonous after a while, but, hey, as a simple every day smoke this stuff is very good. A nice companion (and I still go for the Jack Daniels)!

There is a reason this blend has been around for so long..... IT'S GOOD! This is an all-around good smoke, it is not meant to be some high-falootin' upper-calss brandy drinking smoke. It is an everyman smoke. If you are a tobacco snob, leave my friend the Prince alone, and go pay an exponetially higher amount of money for a burley that (if you're lucky) will be as good an all around tobacco as the Prince.

Drugstore blends can't be compared to the meticulously created high-brow blends like University Flake, Scottish Cake, or Red Scottish Flake. They are a breed of their own.

This is the best over the counter blend I've had so far. There are some premiere blends it might even hold a candle to. But as far as my experience in OTC goes, this wins. Hey, you got money? Buy a tin of quality. Got a cheap wallet and a long drive? PA. It's a nice little smoke as opposed to, say, Middleton's Apple or Captain Black, somewhat more complicated (we're talking Tony Morrison vs. Ha Jin here, not Dean Koontz vs. Thomas Pynchon, so take it with a grain of salt) than the other OTCs I've tried, and is rather enjoyable in a pinch. So, for an OTC is gets four stars.

Against high-grade tobaccos? Two, maybe even three.

It's like comparing Budweiser to Ommegang as opposed to Budweiser to Naragansett if you're gonna hold it up to the quality blends.

Unlike so many oldtime blends, Prince Albert has gotten better since I first tried it 35 years ago. I am no fan of Middleton, but this, along with the Kentucky Club blends, proves the exception.

My grandfather was a pipe smoker, and it was he who first put the notion in my head. He usually smoked Half & Half, which is noxious in ANY decade, but occasionally he would buy a tin (yes, a TIN) of Prince Albert. Not a can, but a 2-ounce tin that collapsed as the contents dwindled...just as H & H once did.

When I first tried P. A., it was just about as bad. But in its current iteration, it is a delightful, comforting smoke that is available anywhere.

There is no bite at all; the nicotine content will satisfy anyone; the taste and side-stream aroma are that of homemade bread.

A great "go-to" smoke for any but the tobacco "snob" when you all you want is the pleasure that only a pipe can provide.

It is dry, cool, politically correct, and will do for anyone in a pinch.

Personally i feel the tobacco from the cannister burns and tastes better then the luxory pouch. At light up it can taste ashy, and drawing to hard during a relight introduces an ashy smell and some minor tongue bite.

Ive found that the cannister smokes verry cool when i keep moisture from going down the bit to the filter. This means that when i start detecting moisture in my mouth, i just spit like crazy till the moist feeling is gone. And afterwords i find the filter to be bone dry.

When i smoke I avoid puffing into the pipe as that shoves spit down the stem making a soggy filter that seems to sour within minutes. Making sure to pull the filter out as soon as possible and drying it seperately has let me keep the sour taste away i had when i left the filter in over night by accident.

I was on an unexpected road trip when I first tried Prince Albert. Since nothing else was open at 2:00 A.M., out of desperation, I purchased a pouch from a convienance store. I was not expecting much due to my past experiences with other "cheap" tobacco's I found myself wondering why I would even bother. Boy was I surprised!

I packed my old Comoy Poker, lit up and got back on the road. Imagine my very pleasent surprise when the thick swirls of smoke went up and the flavor was nutty and cool with absolutely no tounge bite. While PA is a very inexpensive tobacco, I certainly won't call it "cheap" in terms of quality. Sipped slowly, this leaf is very smooth, with a creamy flavor perfectly rounded with nutty tones. It lights easy, burns clean and smooth to the bottom of the bowl.

While I of course still smoke my other favorite burley blends frequently, I now keep a large tin of PA on hand at all times and find myself smoking it more and more. Sometimes I even get a craving for it. There is definately something to be said for a simple straight burley.

PA impressed me enough that I really want to try Walnut blend now. I just wish I could find it locally. :)

This tobacco is a great one for smoking while working outside.This stuff burns great and it stays lit. I really like simple blends while running deliveries that are not very distracting and have a real tobacco taste. I really like to smoke this while fishing. This is perhaps not a fancy tobacco but has a interesting history as a piece of Americana. I kind of wish Middleton would produce some sort of commemerative tin for my collection. My wife does not like its smell and complains when I smoke it at home, but I rather enjoy it's old time aroma. For any activity where you want to concentrate more on what you are doing rather than pipe smoking it is great. I have been thinking about this residue issue and feel it is not as bad as a aromatic and no worse then any other tobacco treated to stay moist. I have many sturdy pipes, which while not super expensive ones, seem to have no problem with the Prince.

This one kind of surprised me. I usually do not like the non flavored varieties of pipe tobaccos I smoke the flavored versions of. I guess that is because usually the flavored pipe tobaccos I smoke are cheaper blends that use the flavor to mask an inferior grade of tobacco. Not with Prince Albert. I actually prefer the natural version to the flavored varieties and I enjoy the flavored varieties a lot. I simply enjoy the straightforward tobacco taste with no casing or any added flavors just tobacco. Very smooth, yet tasty and not boring. But, take the advice of other posters. This is one to smoke slowly as if smoked hot will bite. But if smoked slowly, I cannot think of any other natural tobacco with the exception of Half and Half that still has a slight casing that is this reasonably priced that is this tasty and good smoking. The best $2.19 I ever spend on a natural tobacco with no flavoring that I will keep in my weekly rotation. Best smoked in a corn cob and definitely not for beginners. For them I suggest you start with Captain Black White. It is just as easy to find, price slightly more but not by much, and you really have to work hard to get it to bite back at all. Also, very good in a variety of pipes where as I would use Prince Albert almost strictly in a corn cob.

Nothing starts the day better than a pipe of Prince Albert and a steaming cup of hot black coffee. It'll transport you back 50 years ago...

Over the years, I've found out that there is a difference in quality between the pocket pouch and the bucket. I'd recommend trying the pocket pouch (hey, it's only a $1.89 here) and getting a taste of it to see if you might like it. The tinned version seems to be much fresher and tastier. Like others have said, it's a crimp cut and packs and burns wonderfully. There's no goopy mess left in the pipe and it builds a cake faster than anything else out there. It's pure Burley tobacco and is just "tobaccoey" in taste. Nothing stands out but a nutty dry taste and a great clean aroma.

It seems to go best during the colder months, lit with a Zippo and on a lazy Sunday with nothing to do but read the paper and relax. It will always be around my rotation somewhere...

I'm a man of simple tastes (either that or I've scorched my palate over the last 15 years from smoking too many cigars) but I actually like this tobacco. I bought it out of curiosity; I figured what do I have to lose except a couple of bucks. The pouch has a mild, pleasant, nutty aroma. It smoked well with no bite and left a satisfying aroma. This is good to smoke while busy working, driving or are otherwise engaged. Sure it's not the greatest tobacco you can buy but if you want a decent, burley based smoke and you are on a budget, give it a go.

Being a young man, I find I have Dunhill tastes and a Dr. Grabow pocketbook. Believe it or not, I like this smoke--it's cheap, lights well, lets the tobacco speak for itself and doesn't gunk up your pipe (I didn't like to have to throw any of mine out at all).

It doesn't bite or leave an overwhelming taste--but to my experience it can burn quite hot so be careful. That said, I like it, and whenever I am broke or breaking in a new pipe, I use Prince Albert.

You have to be old yourself to remember what the old guys smoked. This is one of them. My wife has never tried smoking anything. Yet, when she saw my pouch of Prince Albert, she pointed to it and said "Prince Albert in a can." That is an old commercial from the old days. The pouch aroma is Burley. The taste is definitely Burley. It smokes a bit on the rough side, but it is smokeable. I enjoy stuffing it into a no name pipe. Put the pipe in the bag and pack it in with the good old index finger. I like to fill a room with the smoke just to return to that room for the aroma. The aroma takes me back in time when I was young and watched the old guys smoke. If I could afford it, I would hire someone to smoke it for me just so that I could sniff the magic aroma. Its not a regular smoke, but I'll always have some around for the times when I want to go back to those good old days.

The appearance isn't anything spectacular, mostly a medium size, brown, ribbon. There's a few leafier pieces, but not enough to warrant the term 'coarse'. This was supplied bulk, so I'm unaware of the dampness/dryness of a sealed pouch. This looked good though.

If you want a rich Burley blend try this! It seems a fairly basic taste whilst lighting and steadying a burn. But in short time a rich chocolate flavour appears, with a slight sweetness. It doesn't taste as rustic, or rugged, as a lot of Burley blends can, the addition of Cavendish abates this side. The temperature from P.A. is amenable, and it gives a splendid burn. The only fluctuation in flavour is depth: as the bowl burns it seems to develop a little more weight.

Sometimes I think this is better than Carter Hall and sometimes not. It has some off notes to it, and the tobacco doesn't strike me as first tier. But, despite that PA just has something to it. There is more of an artificial cocoa/chocolate note here than in CH. The smoke doesn't develop, it's the same from start to finish.

Sometimes that simplicity is just the thing. I used to always keep CH and PA on hand. I've gotten away from them just because there are tastier alternatives from C&D and H&H that are priced similarly and are much better smokes.

Not as good as Carter Hall. Prince Albert reminded me of cigarettes which I detest. Overall, not a very pleasant smoke for me. It was the second pipe tobacco that I tried after using Captain Black exclusively, and it seemed overly harsh to me at the time. I will go back and try it again eventually.

I bought this PA several months ago along with a couple other codger blends (Carter Hall & Sir Walter Raleigh). I immediately opened it and after performing the sniff test I loaded up a pipe for the first smoke. Not bad stuff, monochromatic and cool smoking as others have noted. With plenty of other blends available, I then socked away the remainder of the pouch into a mason jar. After several months I came back to the jar & decided to give it another whirl (after smoking many more so-called "complex" blends). Here is what I've found ... there are times when less is actually better ... and this is one of those times. PA is just a good, clean, nutty, lightly sweet and primarily good ole Burley blend. Nothing complex ... just a good cool smoking tobacco taste & aroma. This is certainly an all day smoke if one so desires. It's understandable why this one has stood the test of time.

Another oldie but a goodie! Wish I had a dollar for every ounce of this stuff that has been smoked over the last century. Burley and Cavendish at its simplistic best. Everyday smoke for me st dome point during my day, always have done in a jar somewhere on the property. Often overlooked because it is not trendy enough for some. That's a shame, cause they don't know the simple pleasure they are missing. PA is not a heavy or even a medium nicotine blend, just mild and smooth. Really good with some black coffee at 3 or 4 in the a.m. Will continue to smoke this in my regular rotation for years to come

Another classic OTC blend. This stuff is unassuming and straight forward. The notes say there's Burley and Cavendish in there but all I get is the the Burley. It's nutty with the occasional hint of coco making the way to the front. It's not particularly sweet, but neither is it bitter. It's very one dimensional, but that's the appeal. There was a time when this was my go to tobacco, but it's been supplanted by Carter Hall. This is a very close second however. I can understand why this isn't everyone's cup of tea b t if you've never had it you should definitely try it! If for no other reason than its a classic for a reason and its cheap!

After smoking so many things, I still come back to this. This differs in taste and Style from, say Escudo. This is a smooth, clean bring burley blend that has a hint of cocoa in the mix. A class ribbon cut, it always light easily. I still smoke it from time to time.

I got some in a pouch at the drugstore once. Cheap and good from the get-go, burns evenly to the bottom with a "classic" tobacco taste. It's a bit like cigarettes but the nutty flavor is very pleasant. Solid and simple.

A nutty, cocoa-full scent straight of the pouch greets you to a nicely presented tobacco that packs easily, burns cool and fast, and is very friendly to people around you. For the smoker however, a dominant burley flavor reminiscent of Marlboro cigarettes with a faint hint of plum is all the blend offers in terms of flavor.

Reliable, fast, cheap, and friendly. For the price, I can only highly recommend it.

Among my earliest memories of my father are those of him sitting by the radio, listening to some SW foreign station, reading a book and smoking a pipe. The ubiquitous flat red can was the first tobacco I have a memory of.

I've been smoking pipes for 50 years, with the exception of a few years I quitted tobacco. Prince Albert, naturally was one of my first staples, in a time when a cellar or a rotation were unheard of, at least among my acquaintances. It was then a matter of what you smoked.

As I grew older and somewhat savvier tobacco-wise, I managed to keep a few blends at hand and P.A. recessed, until for the better part of twenty years I hadn't tasted it again. Recently, looking for what I described as the equivalent of a lemon sherbet between courses in a banquet, somebody said "Burley! get P.A. or Carter Hall" so I did. I'm now angry that I neglected this simple but excellent blend for so many years.

My regular smokes are upper echelon Balkan/English blends, VaPers and the occasional Cavendish for a break in the routine. Prince Albert was both a revelation as a rediscovery, like an encounter with an old flame. Not enough to tempt you to divorce but something that cartainly stirrs up your heart rate.

The characteristics are well described by the other reviewers, so I won't go there save to say that the ease of packing, lighting and smoking are still there. The cool burn to the very bottom of the pipe leaving only gray-white ash, the zero tongue bite, the simple sweet and nutty flavor, the nice aroma that almost no one will object, plus the workingman price for the huge 400g plastic tin, have made this the prodigal son of my cellar, and gave it a prominent place in my rotation.

It's also probably one of the best blends for a beginner. No wonder it's still going strong after 100 years.

A no nonsense old codger blend that is a monument in the pipe tobacco world.

The cut is very coarse, and I like that. It's dry out of the pouch and packs and burns easily. You may even be able to get this to the bottom in one light with concious puffing and gentle tamping. It almost always burns to a fine white ash with little to no dottle.

No flavor surprised here, it's a burley. I find it to have a very earthy and mossy flavor profile with subtle hints of nuttiness and a slight cocoa flavor (not that anything like has been added). I wouldn't be surprised if sugar or something like that was used to case this but I highly doubt there is any topping. Just a nice natural burley flavor throughout the smoke.

I will admit I was grazed by the N train sometimes. Didn't knock me on my ass but you can feel it if you haven't eaten anything or aren't hydrated.

While I prefer the sweetness of Carter Hall over PA, it's still a great smoke, especially in a cob. This is a great tobacco used to break in a pipe as it doesn't ghost and will form a nice cake. For the OTC burleys I list them as 1. Carter Hall 2. SWR/PA 3. Half and Half. Still gotta get some granger one of these days...

Simple!! And in its simplicity I find a rich nutty consistency which never fails to deliver when I'm n the mood. There is a peculiar aftertaste when finishing a few bowls, but I care not. This is a staple, a classic, a truly American weed that brings back memories of seeing it in its box or jar as a kid and wondering what lie therein. Thanks PA, for the memories gone by and the new ones yet to come. MJCABY

I keep coming back to PA with the hope of finding it to be more than semi-tolerable pipe fodder. It is readily available and I like the option of picking this up whenever I want it, but I have failed to come to terms with this blend.

Some things recommend this age-old blend. PA is well behaved in the bowl, smokes quickly, and leaves very little dottle. Others write of the hints of cocoa and other flavors in this blend. I get much more of that from Sutliff's Edgeworth Ready Rub match, which I find to be a superior blend when I want a burley blast. I used to get good flavors from Sir Walter Raleigh Regular, but that's another story.

However, PA has some kind of a whang in it that doesn't appeal to me. Some have suggested that this is a chemical in the blend. I don't know what it is, but I seem to fixate on it every time I smoke PA.

How can you go wrong with this tobacco? It's just good ol' basic burley. Not too much to go wrong here. Remember, reviews are nothing more than opinions and well you know what they liken them to; Yep, a______s! For the price you cannot go wrong. Don't like it, gift it away and then choose another to try.

After dragging my feet I finally bought a few ounces of PA to try, if nothing else I thought it would be good to break in new pipes with. I was pleasantly surprised by PA slightly sweet, nutty smoke. Not my favorite, but a great go fart around in the garage type of smoke. =Updated 7-3-15= There is something about the Prince that just keeps me coming back. I was primarily using it for breaking in new pipes, but those new pipes are broken in and I continue to grab the PA jar more frequently than any of my other high end blends. It is just a great smoke. Relaxing, tastes good, and smells great, I can use it any of my pipes without fear of ghosting. I absolutely love everything about it. PA is firmly set in my rotation and I'm not embarrassed a bit to say it.

I can't believe I haven't gotten around to reviewing this yet. Next to half and bald or capt black. The prince is the best known pipe tobacco in the us. It's tobacco royalty nonetheless. Even now, while smoking some rattrays highland targe I can bring to mind it's well rounded flavor. I still use it to break in new pipes that are being stubborn.

It burns nice and cool and stays lit very well. It also has a fairly tolerable room note that at least doesn't offend cig smokers. It's flavor is predominantly nutty burley goodness. It has hints at times of baking choc, coffee and something else I can't place. Maybe black licorice. It can get a little sloppy towards the end if you burn it too hot, but it's lack of bite prevents you knowing that until it's nearly too late.

This is the one to grab if you have to get it from a drugstore. Or maybe a gas station in the middle of nowhere. It's sold almost everywhere you can buy tobacco. It's a good solid, uncomplicated smoke for any time of day. It goes well with coffee in the morning, or beer at night. And it's cheap haha. So if it's not for you, you're not out that much money.

I can't believe I haven't reviewed this before! I started smoking PA when I was a teenager because my Uncle who visited from Ireland smoked it and 'forgot' a small pouch and a Corn Cob when he left. I really liked it then and over the years I tried dozens of different tobacco's and have liked many of them yet I keep coming back to good old reliable Prince Albert. Cool, consistent smoke with no bite, pleasant taste and smokes well in all kinds of pipes. I smoke about 5 pipes in an average day and at least 2 are PA

Gurgle-free smoke! Classic example of how my taste buds have changed in my 16 years of pipe-smoking. The first time around, I thought this blend was pretty boring. Perhaps I had yet to acquire a decent taste-testing pipe. I bought a pouch last week and what a difference time makes!

In the pouch, the aroma smelled like a cross between Carter Hall and MacBaren Honey and Chocolate. The aroma did not translate into taste. I can't put my finger on the exact taste, but somewhat like burley with a light coffee and hazelnut flavor. That is probably the natural flavor of the tobacco as no flavorings are listed on the pouch The overall flavor leans more to a Virginia mellowed by burley. The room aroma has no equal, giving off a pleasant burnt caramel scent.

I highly recommend this for VA lovers who want a change of pace or Aromatic lovers who need a break between overly-sweet blends. I can think of several so-called premium blends that have been beaten by the Prince.

I wish I had tried this earlier. It keeps fresh in a tub for many months and never loses flavor or goes stale.

Update 11/29/25

I have smoked many blends including English and VAs. I used to smoke mostly aromatics. However, I found that this was the perfect all day smoke. I then smoked an aromatic. Now I can taste the PG in all of them whereas I never noticed before. I think Prince Albert is the only thing I'll ever be smoking again because there are no chemicals.

Ahhhh! Prince Albert! For me it don't get no better than this. Smooth, mild, consistent flavor, NO tongue bite, NO aftertaste. A real pleasure to smoke! I have been buying this steady for 3 years online from Smoker's Outlet. Great price- great service- great smoke.

A smoke that's been around forever and has found it's way into the hearts of many. A pleasant tobacco, the dominant flavours being cocoa-like and nutty. I also get a slight marzipan note. Burns consistently, though a tad hot, but doesn't bite. Overall a very nice experience!

When I'm enjoying Price Albert pipe tobacco I get aromas and flavors like apples, cherries, chocolate, cinnamon, sweet hay and licorice also when I'm at the local tobacco shop buying Prince Albert pipe tobacco someone will come up to me and ask me why am I buying that cheap low quality pipe tobacco and I'll remember what my great grandfather would always say to me when I would ask him the same thing and my great grandfather would say something like it's not the price of something that tells you and shows you the quality and the value of it it's the way it feels, it's the way it looks, it's the way it smells, it's the way it sounds and it's the way it tastes when you're enjoying it that tells you and shows you the true quality and the true value of it and I would tell them the same thing my great grandfather told me.

Wow how tastes change over the years. PA has become my all day, 5 bowls a day blend. I either smoke small cobs or smoke 3/4's of a large pipe since the last quarter or so of a large bowl doesn't taste nearly as nice. Really sip it and enjoy the chocolaty burley and cedar aroma when blown through the nose and on the tip of your tongue. The Prince really grows on you!

Prince Albert is Carter Halls brother but where Carter Hall has some bright notes ( I think there's a tiny bit of yellow Virginia) the prince has all low bass notes. I do occasionally use some PA in my RYO smokes and it's also a great blend to break in a pipe and will not offend anyone in the room note department as it's just old timey and neutral. Four stars due to it being non offensive and a very good product for the price!

As a novice pipe smoker, I had been directed to aromatics. The experience was unsettling ... tongue burn, strange chemical tastes, hard to keep lit bowls. I decided to look for what I hoped would be a straightforward, bland, solid tobacco. I thought that an old standard would be a good choice, so I chose Prince Albert.

I was delighted with the choice. It was drier and easier to dry, had a solid consistent flavor -- very woody (a sense of autumn leaves burning), smoked as close to a complete bowl of ash as I had experienced, and was, well, dependable. The bite was much reduced over the aromatics. I smoked about five or six bowls in a row and the experience of being able to know what to expect was comforting.

After moving on and trying other tobaccos, I return to Prince Albert on a regular basis. Frankly, the taste now seems flatter than when I first smoked it, no nuance, at times approaching boring. But it is the one tobacco that I know will deliver a decent, if unexciting, bowl.

I picked up the next to the last pouch at Walmart for only $4.73. That's a bargain here in tax heavy Connecticut. Seemed to have been on the shelf awhile as the tobac was dry. Probably why it lit right up and needed minimal relighting. It also burned fast, but did stay cool. No tongue bite. I've been on a tour of all the classic OTC blends, this is the latest stop. Smells sweet in the pouch, but that doesn't transfer to the smoke. Didn't find any nicotine, so I was disappointed. I used most of the pouch to blend with some amaretto tobacco I bought in bulk, and the rest with Altadis Smoker Friendly Jamaican Rum, because neither would stay lit. Both hid the cigarette taste of the PA, but I didn't like either concoction. I gave them both away.

Oh were to start with this wonderful blend, I picked it up for two reasons, One its said to be the grandfather smoke, and what would one want more than to feel like their grandfather? and secondly I work at walmart [commence the mockery] and they sell it for a rather low price, 1.5 ounce for 5.12 after tax. Its wonderful, it has hints of what I feel to be caramel and a slight nutty taste, it smokes a little too fast for my taste but is quite convenient for a smoke break. It doesnt seem to smoke hot or give any tongue bite. contrary to some reviews on here I found it to be one of the most enjoyable smokes Ive had.

PA is plain ole and good ole tobacco. Plain and simple ribbon cut burly tobacco grown and processed in the USA. Its smooth and cool burning and has a mild nic hit with a nutty sweet tobacco flavor. Love smoking it in my cobs. I love the aroma it really takes me back to a simpler time. Nothing fancy but something special from the USA.

I tried to like this. I smoked a pouch and a half of Prince Albert (for a total of about 2 ounces of tobacco). Then I threw the rest in the trash.

The Basics: Prince Albert is a burley blend of pipe tobacco. It's an OTC (over the counter) blend which is widely available in the US, at pretty much every grocery store and convenience store. It's been around for a long time. And, it's inexpensive. A 1.5 ounce sack costs about $3.50. A 14 ounce tub costs about $30. The crimp-cut of the tobacco makes it easy to pack and easy to light, and it generally stays lit. The nicotine content is mild to medium.

The Good: The flavor, when I could taste any flavor, was delicious. There was a rich tobacco taste, with moderate sweetness. There was a casing that tasted sometimes like figs and sometimes like chocolate but which was not overpowering.

The Bad: I often could not taste anything at all. Often, it was like smoking hot air. I got the best results in pipes with small, shallow, wide bowls. I got almost no taste in pipes with tall, narrow, or medium sized bowls.

Worse: I always got a nasty, chemical-type burn in my mouth and nose. That was the one consistent "flavor." I might or might not be able to taste the tobacco, but my mouth and nose always felt like they were being singed by chemicals.

Conclusion: I give Prince Albert 2 stars out of 4. One star is for my own disappointing experience. Another star is because many other people have enjoyed it. People's tastes are different. It's worth trying at least once because it has become an American classic. But, you might want to look for something else, too.

This is the pipe tobacco my grandfather smoked and my first. The aroma was familiar and pleasant. The flavors mild, consistent, not very memorable, kept me wanting more. Smoked well right out of the pouch. A good tobacco to learn the ropes by.

When you need a job done right, on time, and within budget, you don't take a chance with someone new. You call on "old reliable."

When your boss is coming over for dinner, you don't experiment with a new dish. You reach for that "old reliable" recipe.

But when it comes to that moment of the day where you can escape the clutches of the world... where you can sit and meditate in peace... where you can choose a tobacco to truly enjoy... why would you settle for "old reliable"?

I inherited a large can of Prince Albert recently. Lady Heseltine's grandfather departed this world, leaving her a legacy... and leaving me a half-empty can of "old reliable" tobacco.

And it says a lot that the "can" is now made of plastic.

Allow me to make an analogy: Prince Albert is to pipe tobacco what Kia is to automobiles.

There's very little to dislike about a Kia, but I can't imagine anyone truly desiring one. There's very little to dislike about Prince Albert, but I can't imagine anyone truly desiring it.

Yet it's widely available. It's cheap as chips. And it's pleasant enough to be inoffensive just about anywhere.

I would never fault anyone for smoking and enjoying this "old reliable" tobacco, but please don't let this become the extent of your piping experience.

This is one of those classic grandpa smokes and it holds up well if you like simple, minimal flavor in a cool smoke that gives you the most bang for your buck. I smoked this almost exclusively for 6 months when I was just sick of all other smokes and wanted something basic and quick to pack and go. My favorite old time smoke, though not close to my favorite smoke.

Prince Albert is a classic old time favorite. I can remember as a boy watching old men roll their own cigarettes with this tobacco. My father also smoked it in his pipe and I loved walking into a room where it was being smoked.

I find it tastes a bit like its room aroma for the first half bowl. It is not a complex tobacco and is rather one dimensional in its flavor, as are all the classics - Carter Hall, Sir Walter Raleigh and Half n Half. But unlike the others, the Prince will suddenly drop its flavor about mid way down the bowl. It simply goes flat and if you keep smoking it develops a taste not unlike that of a dirty mop. Still, despite its flaws it is cheap enough that I can smoke it down to the point where the flavor drops out and empty the bowl and have another.

Of all the classics, Carter Hall is the mildest. Half and Half has the fullest flavor, with SWR sitting in the middle. The Prince is second in mildness to CH, but lacking in the flavor the others give you.

I'm one who enjoys a good IPA, or a stout, but sometimes it's nice to have a Budweiser. This is a Budweiser kind of smoke. I just finished my first pouch and I enjoyed every bowl. Because of the price and availability here in the States, this is one comes recommended and is a tobacco I'll keep on hand. The taste and smell do suggest cigarettes (as a former cigarette smoker I am particularly reminded of Camel lights). For those who could do without cigarette analogies, this is a simple burley tobacco with very little casing. If there are chemicals added, they don't show up in the taste. The description says "alcohol" casing, but compared to Half and Half or other drug store blends, this one is au naturale.

Edit 1/25/14

Well, I've had some more experience with burleys since my first review. After trying C&D's dark burley for example, my idea of au naturale has changed a bit. Now, to my palate Prince Albert has some obvious casing, and (as others have noted) it does get bitter and sticky around mid-bowl to bottom. I'm taking away a star, but it's still a good blender.

I usually smoke burly english blends but I thought I'd try this. Probably my favorite mild blend I've found so far. It stays lit the whole way through (even when it was raining). Overall a good mild blend.

...when I started smoking a pipe in 1960, Prince Albert, SWR and Half & Half were my everyday day mixtures...very inexpensive at the time, reasonable smoke and available anywhere.

the last 45 years I have spent smoking strong Virginia Plugs/Flakes and they are still my preference...However, every few years I pull a tub of PA out and smoke a few bowls for the memories...

The last few weeks I have been smoking PA and this time around, I quite like this...and since I'm not a Burley fan...the aroma, taste and smoking characteristics of PA have almost made this a daily go to smoke.

The tub I am smoking out of is about 22 years old but I've also purchased a few pouches over the last two weeks as well...little to no difference, so consistency is there for sure...

I have not yet decided to keep this in my top 15 tobaccos I smoke in rotation, but it is close to being there...a most worthwhile tobacco I think, and one that I have come to appreciate more and more...

Of all the OTC brands I've tried this brand is the better choice in a cheap pipe smoke. I personally prefer it in a briar as opposed to any other type of pipe. It plays nice there. This is not my "go to smoke". Never will be. But if I'm waiting for good smoke to arrive and have nothing else available I reach for this stuff. It is a no nonsense smoke with little casing and straight forward taste. I don't get any fermented virginia taste or any fire cured anything flavor. It's just tobacco. The reason I go to it is because of what it doesn't have. It doesn't bite like rabid sharks. It doesn't have heavy biting casings. I can smoke it and not feel like I'm drawing acid through a straw into my mouth. And it is mildly satisfying. Still, it is not a great smoke. It is simply better than any other alternative from OTC when you are waiting for the Good Stuff to arrive. I'm a little envious of smokers that credit this as the best. Ignorance is bliss. But too their credit, it isnt half bad. A little less than half. There are many brands that sell OTC for much more and is truely gruesome. I blame those brands for the few numbers of pipe smokers around. They are there apparently only to persuade future pipe smokers to give up and smoke a cigarette instead. I can seriously see no other reason for them.

This blend smells and tastes like empty smoke. If you want flavor, go somewhere else. Most cigars and regular cigarettes have more flavor than this. Oh well, at least you can't say the smell is offensive. On the flip side, if you just want the act of smoking without having to worry about flavor, this might suit you. Another good thing is that it burns well, even out of the box.

I can definitely see how this product has been around for so long, and so renowned. It's mixture of nice ribbons cut leaves and sweet pouch aroma are very inviting.

It packs very easily, lights even easier, and this stuff has me thinking...

If you want a no fuss straight to the point tobacco and you're on a budget, choose Prince Albert. For $6 a small box? You'd be crazy not to at least TRY it.

I really want to say that I would smoke this forever, but I don't think it's simplicity could keep me happy. Plus Burley and I get a little testy with each other, leading to tongue bite, but not too bad. The flavor is leaning towards medium, and the aroma is pleasant, no goopy toppings here!

I agree with some other people, this is GREAT if you're running low and awaiting incoming products. For the money and availability it's amazing.

As a new pipe smoker thought I would try this old American standby. Found it mellow and cool with no bite. Pleasant aroma but not overwhelming. Smoked nice and dry in my MM corn cob. Would recommend new pipe smokers to give it a try.

Prince Albert has become my everyday go to smoke. Nice nutty Burley flavor with very faint cacao notes. Moisture level is always perfect. Just a nice straight up smoke that I can enjoy any time of the day. People can turn up their noses all they want, but there's a reason it's been in production since 1907.

Well, I never tried this tobacco even though it's been around forever. Much like other smokers maybe I just assumed it can't be good if it's available at Wal-Mart for a decent price. Well, I am not here to tell you it's good, but it's not bad. Not at all.

Bland and mild, with that familiar aroma that you know from your grampa or other old memories, it's just a really simple smoke. Tastes good to me, though nothing special, just kind of a sweetish taste. Burns great from top to bottom, provides the nic that I like. It's a great pouch of tobacco to have on hand for lean times or when you're waiting for an order of high end stuff.

Weird thing about this smoke. This is the coolest pipe tobacco I've ever smoked. I mean, it felt like I was drawing the smoke over ice cubes, compared to other tobaccos. I did not 'feel' this smoke in my mouth the way I do with all other tobacco smoke. Can't really decide if this is a good thing or a bad thing. At first I thought I was puffing air when i took the long draw, but sure enough i blew the biggest, fluffiest cloud of pure white smoke ever! Crazy how cool this stuff is, seriously.

Edit 6/5/14 Well, as it turns out I left home on a business trip with a sasieni full of tobacco and left my bag with all my pipes and tobacco in it and was only able to find some Prince Albert. So I was destined to give this another shot.

I realized I was a little harsh on this one so I am adding a star. It wasn't as bad as I recall and this most likely has to do with experience and improved technique.

I still prefer CH and SWR to this, but it is not bad and will definitely do in a pinch should the need arise. I still will not purposely buy any more, but I reserve the one star reviews for those I can't stomach.

Original review:

I guess I made the mistake of buying some of this after I had bought a tub of Carter Hall. As I feel these two are similar in what they are meant to accomplish, I can't in good conscience recommend this blend as CH is better and is likely available right next to PA whereever you buy it.

I know, I know, . . . Your Grandfather smoked it, Your great grandfather smoked it . . . I get all of that, but did they have the internet? Did they interact with other smokers from all over the world bringing awareness to several blends previously unknown to these gentlemen.

It is a different time. And there are too many better blends out there. As for the PA itself, I was unable to finish a bowl of PA by itself. I just did not like the taste of it. Fortunately I only bought a two oz. bag. I tried it a few times in a few different bowls and the experience did not change. Ironically enough, I mixed the remainder with a generous portion of the CH from my tub. This made it smokable to me, but I would still have preferred the CH straight. YMMV.

I went through a phase of trying as many of those old US brands as I could - probably because they have been around such a long time and a bit of romantic curiosity. "Prince Albert - In the red packet" was the first. I'd never heard of "crimp" cut before but it sounded mildly exciting. What I found was a light brown tobacco, very finely cut - not a shag - but almost like was shredded and chopped into a fine confetti-like consistency. I believe this tobacco is predominately white burley and flavour was mild with a light but familiar maple scent. It burns well with no tongue bite, but it was aslo very one-dimensional and I knew I'd soon tire of it. In summary, I was a little disappointed with this one but somebody must like it if it's been on the market for so long.

I remember the great Prince. He was a tall, slender man of a gentle age. His attitude was that of a jolly fat man, however he wasnt large at all. Because of all the tobacco he consumed and occupied his time with, his appetite was rather stunted. The great Prince always found himself with a cane and many times fashioned his top hat and a large flower on his breast pocket. The combination of these three aesthetic apparel items, always attracted to him female attention. What can be said? The man had a weakness for women. Which is why he expressed his reasons for never marrying; he never wanted to disappoint a wife and child with the unpleasantness of infidelity. Constantly the man would bring me along on many of his hazy, smoke filled adventures amongst the brothels. Albert had a way with the women, even at such a gentle age. He was just as successful in bed as he was in business.

He had been able to use his status a handsome young prince, to gain notoriety amongst not only the nobility, but also amongst the common folk. He loved women of the common folk, especially women with large posteriors, this led him through forbidden doors to promiscuous ventures with women of the darker complexion. To interracial scandal. Oh, Albert, You really were disheveled fox when it came to women.

At one point, Albert had become so enthralled in one woman, hailing from the Caribbeans. She was a practiced witch in the religion of voodoo. (He had planted his seed within her, hence producing a baby. They named him Middleton.) Their practices were rather uncouth, and quite frankly shocking. One day, Albert had disclosed, in confidence to me some of the rituals of the voodoo practice he had become wrapped up in. One of the rituals he had discussed with me had involved 2 slaughtered swine and an artificial phallus to say the least.

Albert's behavior became quite unorthodox until he reached his death bed 16 years later. Yet despite his sporadic behavior, he managed to maintain his image amongst the people, surprisingly enough, the upper class nobility of the very judgmental Victorian era people. On his death bed, he expressed to me his wishes to maintain the company's image and dedication to premium pipe tobacco. Yet, upon his death, his company was handed over to his milano, half-breed, muggle son. The son would later ruin the company by changing the name from "Prince Albert", a name of dignity and honor, to "Middleton" a name of disgust and of low character. He would also ruin the company by replacing the eloquent pipe tobacco with cheap fluted tip cigars. Just like his uncircumcised phallitic manhood.

What happened to this man was a travesty, when they released his old recipe back onto the market, I was enthused to see it once again. Yet the taste was forever tainted by a past full of bitter memories. Now all will know how one man had it all and lost it all. Rest in Peace, Mighty Prince Albert.

I honestly tried to give this tobacco a fair shot. After two weeks and approx 8 smokes I have come to the conclusion that this blend is awful. There is a horrid after taste, very bitter, and the overall flavor of the tobacco is just not very appealing to me. I will admit that when first lit it does have a pleasant aroma. However within five to ten minutes my wife is asking me to step outside to enjoy my smoke. I wont be buying this blend again and overall I was very dissapointed with the taste and aroma. I really wanted to like this tobacco as I have a few friends who swear by it. I found that it burned hot and left a considerable amount of moisture in my pipe when finished. My palate may be different than yours so for the price I suppose it's worth a try. You may like it allthough I did not. Enjoy your smoke.

Ok.... after smoking a lot of very high quality tobaccos, I ran out and the mail was slow so I picked up a pack of this... stuff. NO. Lots of bite, burns quick and left a rather bad taste in my mouth. I may be pampered by the other tobaccos that I enjoy, but I will NEVER buy this again. I will keep a bit on hand, just to remind me how GOOD the other tobacco is to me. Others may not agree, but this is my take on this tobacco.

Prince Albert...the pipe tobacco guaranteed to make you appreciate the taste of burley.PA isn't really a classic as people make it out to be,just like Half & Half and other burley blends it's on the shelves of every supermarket and drugstore.For some it's a nice starter smoke and a good blender,for others individuals such as myself it's a nice everyday smoke on it's own.The taste of PA is very simplified:it's generally smooth and nutty(like hazelnuts),gets richer towards the bottom of the bowl...and that's it just nature-intended goodness.The burley in PA is what I can best describe as 'clean tasting' being that the taste of PA is very open you get to enjoy all the taste characteristics of burley.Not all burleys are made the same,due to how they're cured the taste characteristics might alter for example,you might try another drugstore burley and find it to have a bolder and richer taste but the nuttyness factor has been turned down several notches,it varies radically on the blend.PA has a nice burn time and leaves a cloud of rich white smoke in the room,as a matter fact it normally leaves your pipe dry and clean.The room note I never notice after all these years,but nothing odd about it just the rich and delicious scent of tobacco.Recommending PA as an everyday smoke I'm neutral on:to me burley is like coffee,it's a one-dimensional taste that appeals to certain people and they stick with it.But no matter how much you enjoy the taste of coffee,some day you may try another brand or desire to have cream(topping) with your coffee as a nice change of pace.Point being PA is good stuff and I've enjoyed it for years and still to this day it's my main smoke but it's not the only drugstore burley with something good to offer.

Prince Albert, as everyone knows, is a classic. The taste walks a fine line between pleasant, nutty burley and cigarette. Fortunately, its more of the former and it always delivers a smooth satisfying smoke.

Prince Albert....a classic American OTC tobacco. Not anything special, but at $3.00 a pouch, it doesn't pretend to be. Just a good, smooth, tasty Burley. My first smoke of the day......is PA in a corn cob.

Recently picked up a pouch for old time's sake. When I started on the pipe this was one of my main smokes, as blends of this genre are all that are sold in stores around here. I didn't care much for it but for years I thought it was the best there was, lol because when you go into a tobacco store around here you have your choice of the archetypical OTC blends and that's just all there is. The internet as we know it barely existed back then.

Coming back to it after several years away allows me a greater appreciation for it's simplicity. I also find that it tastes better than I remember... not as bitter or harsh. Now I'm finding a sweet nutty flavor that deveolps into a hardwood sort of taste with subtle cinnamon overtones. Not sure if the "cinnamon" is intentional or if I'm tasting the preservative there. A no-fuss sort of blend, would be good as an all day or yardwork blend if you wish. This blend does not meet my minimum nicotine requirement, hence the two star rating. I've fixed this problem by mixing it 50:50 with C&D's Dark Burley. If nicotine power is not one of your requirements, you may take this as a three star rating as it is.

I am at least the 4th generation in my family to smoke PA pipe tobacco. Grandpa had tins of PA all over his house. My father had several kinds of pipe tobacco tins around his house, but always had one tin of PA around.

I will say this is one of the few tobaccos that seems to improve as it starts to dry out from opening and closing the tin.

I like the strong N kick it has. I find I go much longer between smokes. This is important in winter! Can not say much about Room Note because of having to smoke outside, but I get good reviews from people passing by.

PA is a good Old American classic pipe tobacco. I found at my local store they sell a 5oz bag I get this for $11.25 a bag. I have an old (now made of plastic) tin of PA and just add it in there. I mainly smoke PA in my trusty corncob pipes.

My Dad bought me my first pouch in 1981. It was his favorite and he thought I should try it. He said that my friends and I were always smoking all that "perfumey stuff" (aromatics)like he did in the beginning, until he settled on PA. At first I hated it, then revisited it sometime later and thought it wasn't so bad. Then I found myself craving some from time to time. Now I like it especially after a bowl of a medium to strong English blend; I tend to appreciate the subtle sweetness. Sometimes I mix it with Carter Hall and a little bit of a heavy Latakia blend for flavoring, which I call Royal Albert Hall.

Every serious pipesmoker has to try a pouch of this at least once in his pipesmoking life. I do prefer Carter Hall over this, but would definitely prefer it over SWR, as I said, you gotta try it at least once.

This is a very good OTC, however I prefer Half & Half to this. I personally feel that every new pipe smoker should try all OTC's and if you don't like it at first don't count it out. Just come back later as you gain experience and retry it. You may be surprised at the difference. I found this to be true with Granger, first time was crap, now I keep some on hand. Go figure.

Amazing that in all the years I've been a brother o' the briar I had never tried this classic until very recently. The reason for that is that several years ago, I bought a pouch of Half and Half and found it very disagreeable. I assumed that Prince Albert was probably just as bad, so I didn't bother to give it a try. I preferred buying my 'baccy in tins or from jars at the tobacconist's. Reading pipe tobacco reviews, however, has made me reconsider the so called "drug store blends" and I have found Carter Hall and now Prince Albert to be very enjoyable.

I purchased my PA in a 1.5 oz. "luxury pouch." This seemed to be a very fresh pouch. The tobacco was not moist, but not dry either--just right. The aroma I got was cocoa. The ribbon cut tobacco packed beautifully. I smoked it in my beloved Peterson Shannon 05 which was ideal. It lit well, burned beautifully right down to the bottom, and never required a relight. I made it a point not to puff hard, and, in fact, I didn't need to. This stuff makes plenty of smoke. The taste was consistent and one dimensional--just a nice smooth mostly burley, nutty smoke with a hint of sweetness. It was a pleasing smoking experience: cool and dry without any foul juice traveling up the stem. No tongue bite. No soapy or chemical taste at all.

I didn't experience the 'cigarettishness' that some reviewers have mentioned. I HATE cigarettes--I've always hated them--so I was worried about that. However, I didn't get that in aroma or flavor. I did smoke this outside on the patio; but there was no breeze and the clouds of smoke hung low in the air, so I think I have a good idea of the room note. To me it was just pipe tobacco plain and simple. Like I said, my pouch was very fresh. There's some N in there-- enough to cause a little buzz, but certainly not enough to knock you down (except maybe on an empty stomach). I really like this old codger blend and I'll always keep some on hand. Definitely recommended!

This is a cheap and honest Pipe tobacco. Mild and aromatic, not too cloying and also not very moist... I have puffed it more than 10 years ago and have not found it in my country ever since, so not sure if the consistency of this tobacco is still the same today.

All pipe smokers in the U.S. should try this old legend if for nothing else but the nostalgia. A very plain tasting smoke, but the room note is like sitting with your Grandpa and his pipe decades ago in his study. I have smoked this occasionally for years and if you are able to get a -fresh- packet, it is an enjoyable smoke. Emphasis is FRESH. One does not see it nearly as much on the store shelves as time goes by. A great first smoke in the morning with your coffee.

I grew up with Prince Albert, and most of the old OTC tobaccos. PA is certainly not what it was before Middleton took over. Back in the R.J.Reynolds days it had a much better flavor and aroma. Now, it is much milder in every respect. Still a very good smoke, no bite, good aroma. I remove it from the tub, blend with about equal parts Black Cavendish, spread in a baking dish and dry 24 hours. Pack tightly in canning jars, and age for at least 30 days. Gets rid of the chemical taste.

Well I am currently away from the green and pleasant lands of the United Kingdom and holidaying in the sunny climes of Florida U.S.A.

Thought I'd try some of the local 'brews' that are not available in the UK. There are no decent tobacconists at all in the Orlando area so I opted for two OTC blends I've heard loads about on this site.

The first was 'Red - Cap'.......Well that was shite. Smelled nice, but was just fast burning rough cut cigarette baccy made for pipes.

I then tried a pouch of the legendary 'Prince Albert'. And I must say, I was really impressed with this blend. It's a very mild, biteless, with a hint of a somewhat nutty/coffee flavour.

I currently have two pouches that come in what I assume is a standard foil pouch and a little red box which is wrapped in cellophane.

I have been smoking this daily whilst in Florida (obtained from a nearby Walmart). Its been good, no hassle, low maintainence company whilst I fish for 2lb size big mouth bass on the lake next to our holiday villa. My only criticism is that it does tend to burn a little quickly, but it is only $5 for 1.5 oz's and is an OTC blend.

Shame its unavailable in the UK as it'd go down really well, and is far superior to crap like 'Clan' 'Condor' 'Mellow Virgnia' and the new version of 'Gold Block'

I have stocked up with some other higher end blends whilst out here via internet ordering to our holiday villa. Namely some GLP's 'Jack knife Plug', 'Ten Russians' some 'Blue Note' and some Peterson's Perfect Plug which whilst available in the UK, is only $8 dollars out here, compared to £10 in the UK ($15). All of is to be duly smuggled back to the UK with some of this Prince Albert stuff.

A resounding meh. It was a lot liking smoking a cigarette. From time to time I would get a nice taste of something sweet and tobaccoy, but it was merely a fleeting taste and then I would simply get cigarette. Perhaps that's the "pure tobacco" flavor people talk about, but it's not for me.

Open the pouch to a fruity aroma (half berry, half orange), a little nutty burley in the background - comes through the sweet casing as a sort of buttered graham cracker scent. After the pouch has been open a few minutes the fruit seems to evaporate somewhat, bringing the sweet cookie aroma to the foreground a little.

Packs, lights and burns great.

So mild and quite tasty. Cool burley, mildly sweetened. Nuts, cocoa, coffee. Simple, warm burley blend. I was surprised at the natural flavor of this tobacco, it has a little of that American burley blend soapiness, but not as much chemical taste as most of the drugstore blends. The room aroma is a little cigarette-like, and in a close space turns ashy and stale pretty quickly. Great for the porch and rocker - Damn! This stuff is turning me into my grandpa.

Not at all disagreeable, but not exactly exciting either. Plenty of nicotine. A pleasant, easy smoke. Great Price!

However, good or bad, life's too short for drugstore tobacco. Support your local (or online) tobacconist, and do yourself a favor.

A blend of lighter burleys, mild in character, which are gently sweetened and scented.

PA is innocuous, serviceable, and ubiquitous. There is certainly nothing wrong with it, though it does lack any particularity which would make it memorable. It would probably be slow to deeply ghost a briar. This went well in a chamber of any gauge.

Prince Albert is terrific. The first time I tried it I hated it. It was during a week when everything tasted salty to me, because of a heat-damaged tongue, a new toothpaste, or medicine I was taking -- I'm not sure which. Better late than never. It's sad to think this has been readily available all these years and I've never tried it. I should have smoked this outside punk clubs and during skateboarding breaks, instead of Marlboros. But that was a long time ago, when pipes were as interesting to me as walking canes and Scottish Terriers and elephant umbrella stands and old man hats. I nearly gave it four stars for its mild easy smoke, but it seems to coat my tongue and mouth with a slight dry bitter taste. Maybe this is a characteristic of burleys? Still, I look forward to my next bowl.

Update: I smoked Altadis Mild Burley without getting a tongue-coating effect, so I guess it is not burley which causes the dry tongue. Perhaps this is what other reviewers refer to as a chemical taste? In any case, so far I've only experienced two tobaccos which coat my mouth and tongue this way. The other is McClelland Three Oaks Syrian. I'm lowering my rating on Prince Albert from 3 stars to 2, because this aftertaste is a real deterrent. This also allows room on the 4 star scale to properly rate my favorite tobaccos.

I've smoked and enjoyed quite a variety of tobaccos, from "high-end" Englishes down to generic aromatics. Until recently, though, I'd never bothered to give PA a shot. I guess I couldn't escape the image of dust-covered boxes found on some bottom shelf in every gas station in America. I'd assumed it couldn't possibly be any good. I was incorrect. This is a very pleasant smoke. PA is a fine example of the wonderful burning properties of burley leaf. No matter how you pack it, PA will usually give you an effortless one-match smoke, straight to the bottom, leaving no dottle. It's also a very cool burner- if you make this stuff bite, I'll wager you haven't been smoking a pipe for more than a week. In the can or pouch, the aroma is mild, slightly nutty, with a bit of that burley bittersweet- reminiscent of a bag of chocolate chips. In the pipe, the flavor profile is admittedly flat, but in no-wise is it bad. It's just a simple, honest, straight-up burley smoke. If you're looking for something to occupy you in an hour of quiet reflection, this is a poor candidate. It's simply too mild and, well, simple. If on the other hand you're just in the mood for a quick and easy smoke while working or maybe reading a book, PA will serve nicely. I also like this blend for mixing or layering with other tobaccos.

Bought this on a whim at the local pharmacy store. Not sure why but I still hope to find something at the the least acceptable. Well this stuff isn't too horrible. Much better than anything Altadis has to offer. Its just burley cased with preservatives, although not so much that it ruins the tobacco. Its smokes well without any bite whatsoever. Burns cool too. The flavor isnt anything to brag about but there is beauty in simplicity. There is however an aftertaste similar to cigarette ash that is offsetting at times. All in all its a decent smoke when you don't want to pay attention to how fast you smoke it (mowing the lawn or working ect...)

Being a 20+ year cigarette smoker turned pipe smoker, I need nicotine. Having seen that several of my fellow pipe smokers on BoB have PA in their rotation, I had to give it a try.

After the initial taste upon lighting (which tastes somewhat like pencil shavings to me), the flavor is mild and nice. It smokes smooth and cool. I can see why this tobacco is a classic and why it is still around. For a simple change of pace or an all-day smoke, Prince Albert is a solid choice.

I can't tell you how much I detest this tobacco, the flavor would be okay, except every time I smoke it I get this horrible taste of chemicals, I don't know what it is, but I can't stand it. People recommend this to break in a pipe and I've tried several times and never gotten through a bowl. Simply terrible, that's all I can say about it.

I've smoked many a pipe tobacco in 30 years or so, from expensive pipe shop stuff to whatever I could find in the drug store. I think Prince Albert is a good, decent smoke at a very affordable price. Nothing sexy, nothing fancy,and nothing perfumed or dripping with flavoring extracts - just an enjoyable tobacco. I don't know anybody that doesn't find the aroma to be pleasant.

My Uncle Danny smoked it almost exclusively in the old corncob pipes that were his trademark, and I can remember walking to the corner store with him to get a pouch. Great memories of my favorite uncle. Smoke-wise, he knew a good thing and years later here I am smoking Prince Albert in a corncob pipe and walking down to the local grocery store a couple of times a month to pick up pouch. What can I say - classics never die.

Everyones grandfather loved this stuff back in the day. I just had to try it. Its ok not much taste but then again it is drug store tobacco. Alittle chemical taste but what do want i expected it to taste chemical. Since its a classic ill give it 3 stars. I think everyone should keep the old drug blends around like prince albert, carter hall, captain black. Every now and then its nice to smoke and rotate threw them. So all in all its not bad stuff give grandpapas favortie a try

I tried this old standard only because I've recently begun to really like a few burley blends,....and my grandfather smoked it. Perhaps because I quit a 15 year cigarette habit 20 years ago I find it very hard to think of anything but an old roll your own cigarette while smoking it. The room note is better than the taste. I'll be adding some Latakia to it so I can finish up what I bought. It's just not my cup of tea.

New convert from cigarettes to pipe. This is the first tobacco i tried. I found it a nice alternative to cigarettes. The flavor is mild yet the nicotine levels take the edge off. This is just no nonsense tobacco that is great for smoking anytime. Would recommend to anyone looking to make the switch.

Update after a few weeks. I still find this my go to smoke when in the truck. Easy to keep lit and hard to make it bite. I have an hour ride and a full load in my General Corncob makes it all the way.

I picked up my first pipe with a pouch of Prince Albert, a pipe tool, and a pile of pipe cleaners. I think I actually managed to glean more pleasure from playing with the pipe cleaners. I could recall my great grandpa having talked about how much he liked a bit of the Prince in his pipe smoking days and now he's back to enjoying his time with Al but I have little clue how. The taste is strong but disappointing and smoking just slightly too fast can light your mouth up like a damn Christmas light. The guys enjoy the masculine room note but any female company is driven away by it instantly. Honestly, I can only compare it at the time as a Sir Walter blend with too much kick behind it and not enough subtly to hold it up.

I'm a smoking gormand and have smoked cigarettes for over 50 years. I smoked a pipe years ago and just returned. I find PA to be a simple smoke that stays lit and is inoffensive. I rotate it with Half&Half and Velvet currently.It smokes well in my 30 year old italian briar and I'm going to check it in a new cob later this month. If you smoke it fast, it will bite you! Update: I received my new cobs and love PA in them. Also, I dropped Velvet and added PA soft Vanilla (a nice little smoke).

It seems foolhardy to try a baccy that has 259 reviews warning me that it is really a cigarette tobacco composed of pure burly rather than a blend. However, I felt I should actually try it first-hand so I could malign it with authority. Also, it seems to be the standard by which all other cheap blends are judged so I needed to know exactly what the benchmark is.

Indoors it does taste like cigarettes but outdoors it does have a mellow quality about it and it is surprisingly good for such a cheap tobacco. It does have a heckuva nicotine hit that will satisfy your need for vitamin N for hours. It is not the sort of baccy that you would want to savor with a tumbler of quality bourbon as you sit in your easy chair in front of the fireplace late evenings. It is more the sort of stuff that you smoke while sprawled under a shade tree and sipping coffee with your bird dog resting his chin on your knee.

I ran out of some of pretty good house blends tobaccos from my pipe tobacco shop. The shop then closed so I was forced to buy something. I thought that I would try the Prince Albert tobacco from a local store.

I only smoked one bowl before wanting to gag.

I don't know how people like this tobacco as it is the absolute worst I have ever put in a pipe.

The flavor was quite disgusting, and left a horrible taste in my mouth after smoking. My wife commented that it was the worst smelling tobacco I have ever smoked as well.

If you like the taste of old rancid cigarette tobacco that your cat took a leak on then this might be for you, but if you are accustomed to good pipe tobacco then stay far away from this one.

Luckily I was only out $3 for it and have since placed an order for some nice tobacco that is on the way.

My first impressions when I opened the pouch was that it looked and felt really dry. After a smoke of the acclaimed prince, i felt as if it burned a little too fast. This tobacco reminds me more of a cigarette tobacco. I ended up mixing in a blend called Santa Fe, a nice private blend from my local tobacconist. After adding in a dash of the Santa Fe, it was a pretty good smoke. The prince is not bad, but not that great either. If I had to resort to a drug store tobacco This would not be that bad of a choice.

Great smoke for someone looking to get into pipes, or make the jump from cigarettes. Without a doubt, your grandfather probably smoked this once a week. Great and mild, a taste from back when times were much simpler.

If you want to stand in line to rebuke me for the following, I'll understand, though I would appreciate feedback.

Because it was listed in the Hall of Fame, I tried Prince Albert, this after loving straight, mature Virginias for a number of years. I thought it was terrible. So on a lark, I added some Christian Bros. brandy, then smoked it about twelve hours later. Wow. I've been hooked ever since, some three months now. (In full disclosure, I also added a touch of Curacao.) The moisture is no impediment to a good smoke, and the flavor is outstanding. It absolutely does not have bear any resemblance to aromatics.

Rikowrites below me is right, it depends on the bowl. I treated this tobacco like a cheap one til I read the reviews and treated it like a classic. Went from smoking it in a corn cob to a briar and the latter was much more pleasant. Smoked all the way through with one match. Quite enjoyable and on a side note.. While I was smoking a baby spider floated by on his web.. I gently guided him into the bowl of my pipe. Memorable smoke. Everyone should try PA.

I like 'friendly' burley. That said PA can reveal a wide range of tastes depending on what bowl one smokes this in. That is my experience. In one pipe I could tast all the artifice and props that conspire to concoct a cobbled up OTC train wreck and in another something really, really good.. a hint of Rich's City of Roses (Sacre Mon Bleu). I'm more than happy to find something I like at an affordable price. That tobacco has stuff added to it to make it smoke better is nothing new. Aged, cased, topped, pickled, herbed, overpriced...pick your battles and enjoy it for what it is.

If nicotine is what your looking for...Here it is. Good smoke for a drugstore brand. It has a great nutty flavor at the bottom. Good for an all day smoke thats not too expensive. Works well as a blender. Mix with Black Cavendish and Latakia and you have a pretty decent smoke.

Awww, I don't know...I'll just say that it's a good thing a pouch of this only costs a couple of bucks. Of course, so does a ticket to the Blah Festival.

A pleasantly inoffensive blend, I'd picture this being a good tobacco for accountants to smoke. Know the difference between an outgoing accountant and an introverted one? The outgoing accountant looks at YOUR shoes when he's talking to you.

(bam!)

Hopefully Prince Albert was a bit more interesting than his tobacco namesake.

Smoking a pipe is a treat for me, I only smoke a bowl a couple of times a week and so I really like it to be an event. Prince Albert would be my go-to smoke if I smoked several bowls a day & needed something to cleanse my pallet, but I don't, so Prince Albert's inoffensive nature is lost on me. I find it unsatisfying because there's a lot there that I really love about this tobacco, it just doesn't deliver the whole package. It's nothing special. I get why a lot of people love it, though...sometimes "nothing special" is just what you want.

Well after all of these years I finally bought a pouch Of Prince Albert out of curiosity. I must say that I am somewhat surprised. I dont think that there is a single OTC blend before that I would recommend. Prince Albert smokes cool and smooth for me. The strength I would consider medium. The burley is the key player in this blend although the virginia is detectable. If you need a decent burley blend in a pinch, I think this would do as you can find this almost anywhere. Will this blend end up in my normal rotation - probably not. I certainly would buy another pouch if I want a burley blend to smoke while waiting for my C&D burley blends to arrive in the mail.

God bless America. PA probably remains popular because it's a good all around smoke. The taste is mild but noticeable and memorable. The room note seems extremely light, though I haven't tested it on my wife yet. The best part about PA though is that it burns so well. I'm not an all day smoker, but if I were, this would be something like what I would shoot for. After you're done you have almost no aftertaste, and the pipe is clean as a whistle. It says on the package that it burns slowly, but I don't think that's the case. It does burn well however.. I rarely need to relight. You're not getting the most sophisticated stuff on the planet, but it is pleasurable and really and enjoyable tobacco to smoke. Some have called it like a comfortable pair of jeans, which I think hits the nail on the head. You'll keep coming back to it.. they mixed a winner with this one.

Prince Albert is heads and shoulders above the likes of Borkum Riff and Captain Black. In an emergency I would buy it and smoke it. It almost deserves three stars, but not quite. There is a cigarettish after-taste which is somewhat bitter and not quite pleasant. Hence two stars.

When it comes to OTC's, PA tends to stand above the rest..not in taste, so much, but in provenance. I mean, it's been around for, what?, a billion years? Yeah, it's an ok smoke...but really? Does it really merit 3 stars?

Not in my book.

If you're looking for a clean, nutty, burley experience on the cheap, well, I believe Carter Hall is the better choice. However, PA offers something CH cannot...complexity.

To be honest, I detested PA at first...harsh, bitter, (your derogetory adjectives here)...

But, after a dozen or so bowls, I saw the light...a dedicated burley smoker would prefer this over CH do to nuance...if, a big darned if, you like to have every bowl shaded with complexity...well, then, a bowl of PA can't be beat...(for the price/availability it goes for.)

Me? I still prefer Carter Hall...however, PA still holds a place in my cellar, for reasons I can't understand...yet.

I thought I would add my two cents since I smoke alot of this nowadays. I must say it smokes very well in my Bo Nordh "Ramses" as well as my S. Bang and my Lars Ivarsson pipes. You see, since I insist on purchasing such expensive pipes, I must make up for it by smoking cheap tobacco and living in my van down by the river.

JUST KIDDING......but I do like this on occasion, especially when fishing or just out tramping in the woods. A good tobacco to wean cigarette smokers to the pipe with as well. Great in a cob.

Ok, here's the deal. If you are expecting something out of this world, you will probably be dissappointed. But then, why would you be expecting something out of this world at a basically give-away price? One of the absolute cheapest tobaccos you can buy - at least in my area.

BUT, for a very cheap smoke, it is not bad. I actually like it. Not too strong on strength or flavor, yet not too week. Packs well, lights well, stays lit well, smokes well. Doesn't taste bad. On bang for the buck, I'd give it 5+ stars. Overall, even compared to much more expensive tobaccos, I'd still say it holds up well. Not the best you'll ever experience, at least I hope, but still, not bad at all!

Historic smoke. Trustworthy. Mild and tasty. Iconic. All American. A Standard. Has been through WWII, Korean War, Viet Nam, right up to the present day. Will be around 100 years from now. It's that good. Your grandfather smoked it in his pipe. So should you.

This tobacco snob actually likes the Prince every now and then. It is buttery, nutty, and and semi-sweet.... and I like it. It is great for mindless smoking when you are just messing around and don't want a "fussy" pipe to distract you. Is it the highest quality baccy out there? No way. However , it is still relevent and enjoyable.

You have to smoke this at least once if you are a pipe smoker, especially an American pipe smoker. It is historic and not all that bad either. It has chemicals to help it burn well, chemical to keep it from drying out and sweetened to help the low grade tobbacos. And even after all that, it still is not a bad smoke. It is a no brainer, a bundle cigar, store brand cola, a car made in India. A problem with this cheap and easy to find "over the counter" brand is that; with all the new state and federal taxes thrown on to the cost, this tobacco costs as much as higher quality tobaccos. At Walgreens in Florida it costs more than Samuel Gawith tobaccos available at most tobacco shops. Also, since the Prince isn't in tins anymore; the old joke doesn't work anymore. You know it. "Do you have Prince Albert in a can"? The new answer would be; "no, but we do have it in Luxury pouches" What...huh...click. Damn.

When I first opened the package, I thought it was cigarette tobacco, but I noticed a nice sweet coffee aroma. I packed it into a no name billard, and fired it up, and was pleasantly suprised. It is a very straightforward and consistant smoke that I got a little kick of nicotine from. Along with coffee flavoring, it has a nice nutty, sweet finish and the roomnote, while reminiscent of a good cigarette is pleasant to tolerable. Plus, I can get a pouch of this for $3.59, plus tax, at my local grocer. It's a great value and it fits right in with the rest of the cellar.

The ultimate granpa tobacco in the States and an American classic. In fact, I remember my great-grandfather smoking Prince Albert in his pipe on the front porch of the family farmhouse. It is widely available, smokes easily, is pleasant, and a great bargain. As noted elsewhere, I think the aroma after smoking is slightly reminiscent of cigarette smoke, although I am not bothered by that. It is not complex. For what it is designed to be -- easy to smoke, pleasant, widely available, and affordable -- it is a 4 star tobacco. I give it three stars.

I didn't care much for the Prince beyond the typical chocolaty-burley pouch aroma. I found the smoke bitter and very much like cigarette ash. The room note was all cigarette and very disappointing. For a burley, I've had better and won't be re-visiting PA any time soon. Since there isn't a "Room Note" category for disagreeable, I was forced to rate it "Tolerable." It certainly wasn't "pipey" in my book. I know many find the Prince a pleasant smoke, so out of courtesy I gave it a "Somewhat Recommended" rating.

Nice, simple nutty flavor. The more I smoke Prince Albert the better it gets! The slightly sweet, nutty flavor is ever so satisfying, like a good cup of coffee. I could smoke it any time anywhere. It is a far-cry improvement to the soapy taste of an aromatic, and gives a good break from the spiciness of latakia blends. As for the roomnote, there comes a time in a pipe smoker's maturation where he stops worrying what everyone else smells and concentrates on taste. However, after closer inspection, I would venture to say that Prince Albert's roomnote is a step-up from cigarettes.

I've been smoking this stuff off and on for 30 years. What I do enjoy about it is that I can be driving somewhere and get the urge for some PA. If I don't have some with me, the next gas station or drug store will. This tobacco is an old friend that I can depend on. I do not recollect any change in the formula in all these years. My pallate is a liberal one. With enjoyment of Latakia's to Burleys and things between. And knowing that PA is what it is, it has my loyalty and will continue to enjoy it.

As a nice discovery, I use this in a 3 to 1 ratio to mix with Virginia #1. Try it...

Picked up a tub in the course of accumulating some drugstore brands out of curiosity. Easily lit, easily kept lit, easy to take flavor. Wife complained of the room note. It had a somewhat cigarrette-like room note. All in all, a good no trouble smoke. Handy for those days when you just want to sit back with a bowl full of something that doesn't make any demands. I like it.

After many years of off and on pipe smoking I recently found this site and picked up the old Dr. Grabow and giving it a whorl again. I have never considered myself a pipe tobacco expert nor have I ever really gotten much flavor out of smoking a pipe although I have always wanted to enjoy it as others do and have on this site. Why I keep coming back to it as I do. I do find the Prince to be a pretty good smoke. A little bitey if pulled on to hard but all in all not bad. The room note is not over whelming to others as are some tobaccos that I've tried in the past. And of course it is sometimes hard for Yourself to tell so You might have to ask others who might be around You when You smoke it. Update: I have gotten better at discerning pipe tobacco over the past couple of months as I've stayed with it this time and not put it away as I have in the past. PA is what it is. I'm not saying its a bad thing. It is just what it is. It is a cheap smoke which You can find just about anywhere. It serves its purpose when Your in a pinch and I do keep it here in the news & traffic center for a quick smoke when I'm hurried.

I hate to do this to a blend, but Prince Albert just didn't sit well with me. I found it to be bland for the most part, and when it did have taste, it tasted like burning peanuts. I still prefer Captain Black as the best drug store blend and I would not recommend Prince Albert to any beginning smoker, as it would put them off the hobby.

This is my daily smoke. Light enough to puff all day, and smells good enough that smokers and non smokers both say nice things about it. once it's lit i take even puffs (teeth still grasped onto stem) inhale deeply, and exhale slowly, and for a halfhour straight breathe nothing but smoke and i have no relights, no bite, no gunk, clean grey ash, no excessive liquid.... just very dependable. favorite of both my grandfather and i mainly because welove burley, virginia,and it's cheap

Not sure how any burley lover could give less than 3 stars to PA. That said, I have found a very marked difference when smoked in a cob and so it is from this perspective that I assign 3 stars.

I cannot really place to fine a point on this. PA provides one of the best burley flavors I have tasted .... in a cob. Though other burleys do tend to taste better in a cob ... PA and Granger really transform into a better tasting tobacco ... in a cob.

The quintessential American burly. The origional sweet nutty flavor against which all others must be judged. Sweet, mild and flavorful. Watch for a good N hit right up front. Flavoring to me is wine, not coffee. No real way of knowing what is in it, no one in a position of knowing is telling.

Perhaps one of the most beloved and popular pipe tobaccos in American history. This tobacco has been around the block a few times. This is a very basic blend, consisting of purely burley tobacco. No topping, no flavoring, just good old straight burley tobacco.

As an associate of Rite Aid, I get a decent discount on tobacco (except cigarettes, but why would I buy those?). Thus, I decided to give a couple of those "Drugstore Blends" a try (Captain Black, PA, Carter Hall, Borkum Riff). I bought a can of PA and Captain Black Regular, to get a good sample of each.

Anyways, let's get to the point. In the can, the Prince has a very straightforward tobacco smell. I also detected a bit of cherry aroma, but that might just be my nose tricking me. It is a bit of a drier tobacco, but the moisture content is good.

I tried this in a few different pipes, but I liked it best in a trusty cob. The flavor is just like the aroma: Straightforward burley tobacco. Nutty and bold on the tongue, with a pleasing aftertaste. The room note is kind of stinky, but a large improvement over cancer sticks. If you feel like mellowing out the room note for public smoking, add some Captain Black or some straight black Cavendish to it. After a couple days in a jar, the flavor and aroma seemed to mellow out (and improve, in my opinion).

So, I recommend this iconic tobacco if you want to experience that little slice of your Grandfather's America for yourself. Sure, an expensive, imported burley might be a bit more flavorful and more aromatic than PA... But if you want a good burley on a pauper's budget, go with the Prince.

I had been gifted this tobacco recently and had never tried it before. I don't think I will be going back to try it again. When opening the package it smelled and looked a LOT like Bugler roll your own ciggy tobacco...which if I am stuck rolling a cig is a real step up from Top, but not as good as Drum....but I digress. It wasn't goopy, or wet and had a nice clean feel. I drizzled the short shag cut into a brand new Savinelli and it packed quite nicely. The thought of putting it in a brand new pipe was to start breaking it in with an innocuous burley to get a good foundation on a cake for future VA flake use. This didn't happen. I got as far as the charring light, tamp, and relight when I realized what I might be doing. This stuff gave off a horrible soap and "granny flowers" stink which I recognized on the spot. This was the stink I have been working to get out of some estate pipes for YEARS. Here I was with a brand new pipe, and I was about to inflict this horrid floral perfume upon it. I immediately upended the pipe and dumped the contents. This tobacco will NOT be touching any briar pipe in my rack....EVER. Don't get me wrong, I don't want to come off as a snob, but this was among the worst thing I have ever put in a pipe. I was going to give Half & Half as well as Grainger and some other American classics a try, but now I am not so sure..........

A dependable burley that took me a couple of pouched to appreciate. I understand why so many people like this blend. It has been around so long for a few reasons. Dependability, price, access, and no fuss ect.

I recall when I first tried this blend I was fairly new to pipe smoking. I smoked very fast burning my tongue and blamed it on the tobacco. I did not think I would ever get any Prince Albert again. Today however I picked some up on a whim, after all it is a classic. Having gained much experience in smoking technique and refined my pallet since my last smoke of this blend, I had an entirely different view. It burns well, and tastes quite pleasant and smoky, with a subtle sweetness. I will most definitely be picking up some more after this pouch is gone.

Very intriguing, indeed. In the bag/can, the tobacco has an amazing smell, not entirely unlike cherries dipped in bittersweet chocolate. Unfortunately, it doesn't burn with that same aroma or flavor, and that intrigues me to no end. What it does taste (and smell) like is something between a Marlboro and a Camel. As an ex-cigarette smoker (way back in '96) I had no clue what was waiting for me in that bowl when I got into my car, torched it and started driving. Immediately I began to feel the nicotine kick that I hadn't felt in years. Within five minutes or so, the car began smelling like a used ashtray, and that was with the window rolled partway down. I only made it through a third of the bowl; I was actually enjoying it as an unusual experience, but I couldn't physically handle any more of the buzz. About an hour after letting the pipe die out, the back of my throat and nose felt raw; it's a feeling I recognized from long ago, when I'd had to work the odd sixteen hour shift and smoked more than my norm.

This morning, that's all cleared, and I'm left wondering: What would my girlfriend (who smokes Marlboros) think of it if I rolled it into a cigarette, and what can I blend this with to keep the burley present while taming the kick?

Very cool experience. If I were still smoking cigarettes, this would get a "Highly Recommended." But I'm not, and it's not something I'll ever smoke by itself again, so I'm labeling it "somewhat recommended" with the caveat that if you do smoke cigarettes and are getting into pipes, give the Prince a try.

it seems to me that this tobacco takes some getting used to. i didnt like it much the first five times, but its developed a place in my rotation. its my morning smoke, great with a cup of coffee. very rich and fruity smell out of the pouch, almost earthy. lit up, its bland and very smoky. almost none of the fruitiness comes through. ciggy, some say, id agree, but the little details are what separates this from rolling tobacco. id call it harsh, but not strong. not enough of a nic hit for my tastes. id say, for the money, this stuff is good, but dont smoke only this, and be prepared to dedicate a pipe, it can make other english blends taste blander.

There was a time in my life when I was to "good" (perhaps the word should be "arrogant") to ever let PA touch one of my pipes. My father-in-law, whose funeral I am attending this weekend - he was 90, and who I wish I could share this with, smoked PA and I always rolled my eyes about his taste in tobaccos. Often I sent him boutique blends so he could see what he was missing. Youth has a way of making an ass out of one.

Then I read a review of PA in Cigar Magazine that gave it high marks for an old old Burley brand. I saw a tin at our local BX for $15.00 and thought it was time to give it a true testing. I must preface this review by saying I like Burley and Burley blends when I want a change from VA flakes - my normal 'go to' tobaks. I enjoy Edgeworth, G.L. Pease Burley and Hearth and Home Burley Kake. That said, I was pleasantly surprised by the Prince.

Relegated to #4 size GBDs and an old Charatan blasted bulldog lovat (a 'go to' for Burley blends) I found the smoke was not harsh and filled with annoying traits. It held 'no surprises' from a Burley stand point. It was earthy and nutty in taste and aroma. It burned well, was not harsh, and did not bite my tongue or coat my palate. In the tin, the tobacco is a crimp cut, and was not filled with dust and stems. It has a top dressing, as most Burleys do, but I did not find it objectionable nor could I tell what it is. I am giving this three stars because true to so many Burley/Burley based blends PA grew somewhat strong and bitter towards the bottom of the bowl.

Balancing everything, PA is a great smoke, especially for Fall and the change of seasons. The price is right, especially for this classic American icon. And if it was good enough for my father-in-law, a veteran of World War II and the Army Air Corp, I am glad to say it is good enough for me.

I have to honestly say that this is the absolute worst tobacco that has ever been put in my pipe. I bought a pouch about a month ago and put it in a pint jar. When I opened the jar a month later it had a liquor scent to it, maybe bourbon or whisky? The very first puff at first light seemed pleasant but it went downhill from there and at half bowl I dumped it out. About two minutes into smoking it, it tasted exactly like I had dug through someones ashtray and gathered up all of the tobacco from the half burnt cigarettes and put that nasty stuff in my pipe. If you are an ex cigarette smoker and try this in a pipe you'll know what I mean. This tobacco will be the last stuff I ever smoke, and only if they outlaw tobacco and I smoke my 25 pounds of other blends I have stored away in the basement. The only thing this stuff has going for it is that it has a great nicotine kick. Do yourself a favor and stay away from this stuff. I would recommend 'Anniversary Kake' from pipesandcigars.com, has a similar nicotine kick, is pretty cheap (about $30 a pound) and tastes fantastic. If someone gives this a good rating take a look at their profile and what they have reviewed. This stuff is just down right nasty.

Along with Half & Half, which I like slightly better, the best of the codger burlies for me. When I am in the mood, hits the spot. I never smoke it in anything but a cob. It could never replace my Virginia flakes, but if I could only get to a drugstore...but still, this is good quality burley at a good honest price. I realize I haven't said anything new in this review, but why not tack one more up for this true classic?

1-24-11 Nothing bad to say about the Prince. Just like the artist...the artist known as...the artist formerly known as..the artist formerly known as the artist known as...oh, blow it, Prince! Yes, that's my analogy! Prince has talent, has been around a long time (translation: from the early 80s) and is not really my cup of tea to listen to all the time, though some people revere him! I have to recognize his singing and songwriting ability, however. Where my analogy fails is that Prince Albert tobacco has been around a lot longer than Prince, and people are still smoking it. Not too bad. Half & Half and Carter Hall are good too. Codger burlies that will still be produced (BRANDED!) when Prince is a codger.

My inaugural web review. What else could it be other than Prince Albert. It is a Hall of Famer after all.

Why PA? Price & Availability is the obvious choice. I picked up a "luxury pouch" at my local WallyWorld for 3-bucks & change.

Another reason would be that it conjours up images of my Father's folks. They were poor chicken farmers from Oak Grove, LA. I remember seeing them roll there own from an ever present can of Prince Al when I was a boy until the day they died. I also have several pocket tins from my mothers dad, whom I never had the good pleasure to meet as he passed the year I was born. But he left behind the tins, a pipe stand with a few wood pipes from the 50's & 60's (even one cob that made a few stage appearances when I was a boy), and a fascinating collection of paper match books from his travels while in the military & as an oil field worker. He left behind other fineries such as pocket watches, pocket knives, cigars, and straight razors.

On to my opinion of the smoke:

I'm enjoying myself for both nostalgiac reasons & also because I am surprisingly pleased at how mild it is and with the agreeability of the overall experience. Perhaps for the price I shouldn't be surprised. But I am moreso surprised by how mild & unfussy it is in comparison to some of the more expensive "serious" blends I have sampled. It is no wonder so many have made PA their choice.

This is classic pipe tobacco. The pouch aroma is pleasant with a waft of sweetness and dried apricot. The cut packed easily. I typically go with an amateurish "gravity fed" method that relies on the tamp to keep things cozy. But I was actually able to pull off a respectable 3-layer method. Though that accomplishment is neither a prerequisite nor any notable stature in my book.

The nose on the smoke is very light, and I really detected no discernable flavor from the bowl. But I will say that it did not linger as an ashy taste. The bowl did not quite stay lit to the bottom, leaving about a dime-sized remainder of wafer-thin unburnt leaf, but that is probably more operator error than anything else. The room note is pleasant & tolerable in that it is faint and has a classic pipe tobacco smell...again not ashy like cigarettes. NO tongue bite. Very dry smoke. A minimalist pipe weed.

I recommend this brand. It will remain fondly in my rotation as my leaf collection grows, and I would encourage others not to turn their noses up at it simply out of concerns about image & whatnot. Especially if, like me, you are on a drugstore budget.

Price-to-Value ratio is of ever increasing relevancy and should always be on a consumers mind. I'm sure there are more expensive choices that are similar in delivery if not inferior, and that earns Prince Albert its place as an All Day Smoke and a Hall of Famer. Get you some.

I remember Father trying to kill us all those years, smoking his cigarettes. And, as many others here, the Burley burn, the cigi scent, brings back such memories of lost youth, though in my case, perhaps, they are counter-nostalgic.

Prince Albert is the over-the-counter king, the American ashtray standard, for those who enjoy such things. Open the can (now plastic), sniff, and it seems a fresh pack of cigs. Smoke it, a cig. Put it out, the cigi odor lingers. This is the tobacco for which one might as well not be smoking a pipe, for with it you are not taking the pipe where it was meant to go.

Quality smoke. I can smoke it all day. I don't, but it is in my daily rotation now that I finally have some. It's a good transition tobacco between my English, Balkans, and Va/Vapers.

My biggest problem with it is I cannot get it about any of my tobacco shops, drug stores, supermarkets or grocery stores. I can get it at Wal-Mart in the 1.5 ounce pkg. for $4.98...a little cheaper than "designer" blends but just as expensive as Tinder Box House Blends.

I've been smoking PA for almost 20 years now. It's not my all time favorite or high up in my rotation but I do enjoy smoking it from time to time. It's not complex, it's not exotic. It's just plain and simple a good basic pipe tobacco that's been enjoyed by a lot of pipers for a lot of years. I know a lot of folks that hand roll cigarettes that swear by PA. I recommend this to any one who wants to pick up pipe smoking to try this one. It's easy to load, light and smoke and it packs a good nicotine hit that a lot of the imported expensive tobacs lack. Most grocery stores and corner markets in the states sell PA so it's not hard to find and it's cheap. I recommend this one over Half & Half or Captain Black anyday.

I don't know why I waited 40 years to try this but it is a favorite now. I prefer burley over all other tobaccos and this is a burley that hasn't been messed around a lot with. I smoke it often and don't get tired of it. The same with another Middleton product, Walnut. Just pretend it costs more and enjoy it.

Although I'm not in love with this tobacco I'll prolly always have some old dried out PA on the shelf forever. It's a little too "ciggy" flavored for me. Tends to give a harsh bite to the back of the throat. Some like that sting to the back of the throat but I don't care for it. But I gotta admit, after about 7 or 8 beers a gnarly bowl of the Prince does have a certain appeal to me. I like it in my clay pipe. Ouch! watch the fingers, don't get burnt drunk boy!

We never know when we will be kidnapped by old friends after work to go watch a ball game when your beloved virginias and briars are safely at home ! When this happens vincenzo forces aforementioned kidnappers to pull into any drugstore U.S.A and pick up a pouch of the Prince and a corncobb and beverages!It goes well with anything ! It"s not the smoke of your life "It just saves your life Its like those old friends that kidnapped you it's always there and always right! When these same clowns have the motor running on the boat and your on it bring 2 corn cobs in case 1 falls in the drink and keep the prince in a zip lock bag just in case ! Try not to catch more fish than your hosts and focus on catching a buzz and enjoy! There are never enough times like these! Get some V !

Added 12/15/09 - I'm downgrading this to 2 stars, just can't see giving it anything more when there are better buleys out there that aren't treated with proplyene glycol to keep them moist.

Original: Price Albert is the King of all drugstore blends. Whenever my grandfather smoked a pipe it was PA or Edgeworth. There's not much I can add to something that has been reviewed so much except give it a shot, you won't be dissapointed. Also a note on the "Cigarette" smell some have reported. Have you ever seen a vintage tin of PA? On the tin it says "Long burning pipe and cigarette tobacco". Yes back in the days of RYO cigarettes PA was also used for rolling a stick. I have tried this and it's not bad, the smoothest smoke you'll find and it sure beats the heck out of the machine made crap chemical soup that goes into store bought cigarettes these days.

Like so many others, I have stuck to the flavoring/aromatic blends as someone relatively new to the hobby. The other day while picking up my normal Cavendish blend I spotted the old-codger/burley type blends. I decided, what the heck and bought 2 pouches of the Prince and one of Carter Hall. (I wished now that I had gotten more of the CH). I decided to give CH a first go, and boy was I surprised! From the very first moment I opened the pouch to the very end of my bowl I was over-whelmed. I now start off every morning with a bowl or two of CH to have with my morning coffee, and anytime throughout the day when I wish to savor the moment. Prince Albert on the other hand hasn't fully won me over, yet I keep coming back to it little by little. If I had not purchased the CH, PA probably would've gotten a better review, but I haven't given up on it yet. Perhaps PA takes a little more time to fully appreciate as I suspect it will. My hats-off to Carter Hall, by far the best burley I have yet to experience, and a close second to PA who may just win me over yet.

UPDATE... It looks like PA is slowly but surely winning me over. The other day, I searched around town for some Carter Hall, but to my dismay, very little was available as I wanted it in a can, and the pouches that I found were overly priced. My local tobacconist didn't carry the traditional OTC blends, but made a note to start carrying it in the future. What I did find, however, was a tin of PA at a hard-to-resist price. Since then, PA has taken the fore-front and is becoming my preferred smoke, and close to being upgraded from a three-star.

I picked up a small pouch of this the other day merely because of its fame in the pipe smoking world. The smell of the tobacco in the pouch resembles fig newtons but the taste is something completely different. Perhaps I just had a bad experience, but I could not sense any taste to this tobacco. I am also quite certain that there was very little nicotine. It was MUCH too mild for my taste, however I have since used it to tone down some very strong tobaccos and it has worked quite nicely, but other than that, I would not recommend this tobacco.

**UPDATE Upon smoking this tobacco more i've grown an appreciation for it's smooth simplicity. I would recommend this as a last pipe of the day to ease yourself into slumber.

Very good smoke, plain but just that kind of smoke you can have all day long. Got kicked our of the house immediately by the wife, but that was expected. By the way having read many of our fellow pipe smokers comment that there's a note of cigarette, so i ask the wife how she liked the smell of my new tobacco and her response was Marlboro red pack (i didn't detect it so still don't care). The room note might smell like cigarette but let me tell you that the taste is no were near that. Had to relight half the time that with captain black white.

This is a burley blend for those who like burley. Nothing fancy, no hidden complexities just plain burley that smokes well, tastes good and is easy on the wallet. If you are just starting out with your pipesmoking, this is a great blend to start out with. Cakes your briars up quickly, doesn't bite unless you puff like a madman and is just easy to fill your pipe and smoke it up. I just dip my pipe in the tub and scoop some up, shake the pipe to settle the tobacco and repeat if necessary.

A very low maintenance and enjoyable smoke. While this is not my favorite I still reach for it a lot, especially if I am smoking and working at the same time. And the good price never hurts, it's obvious why this is a classic.

CHICAGO ALERT While walking on Wabash Avenue from Marshall Fields (I still can't call it by that other name) to Iwan Ries a young lady stopped me and asked what I was smoking. "It smells just like my grandfather's tobacco." I'll bet other Prince Albert smokers have had similar experiences. It's just another bonus you get from this lovely old burley.

I'm glad I read all the positive reviews about PA before buying it, because it smells terrible in the pouch. The first thing I noticed, and the last, is that it is straight up Burley, nothing more, nothing less. Surprisingly good for a drugstore tobacco. No bite, great flavor for burley, stays lit very easily, doesn't leave any goop, doesnt smell too bad, and it's inexpensive! It's smokes great in a cob or briar; I've been using it to break in several of my new briars.

Now, I am a bit of a neophyte, and the first time I smoked this I hadn't eaten in 3 hours and was smoking it in a rather large pipe. Needless to say, I was feeling the Nicotine within 15 minutes and had to sit down. I won't do that again any time soon...

UPDATE I have recently purchased a pouch of CH. In comparison, CH is milder, smells better, and has less nicotine. Overall I prefer CH to PA. Also, the reason PA only gets "tolerable" on room note is that my wife doesn't like it in the house, whereas she doesn't mind CH in the apartment.

I started smoking the pipe in 1978. I've spent a considerable small fortune on blends and brands back in the day and trying to find what I liked best. After many trials and tribs, goods, bads and uglies, at one point I discovered that a humble burley was what I most enjoyed at any price. P-A is one the three straight American burleys I've been smoking for at least 29 years now. P-A's flavor may be mild but is still damn good. The aroma from the pouch and bowl is nothing short of good, honest pipe tobacco. And the ladies are still attracted to the aroma of P-A! ;)

Well much has been said about PA and I wanted to chime in since I just tried this venerable blend. I like it better than Edgeworth ready rubbed and it seems to smoke better. Lots of smoke...nice smoky taste, great nutty aroma...no cased flavoring which I appreciate greatly. It does have a nice nicotine kick but not as strong as some other blends I've tried (1792, Bracken, Irish Flake). There is a very singular full flavor to this but I quite like the consistency and monogustatory nature of this weed. I notice a peculiar taste that many would refer to as a "drugstore" type aftertaste but I don't mind it since I love the aroma and primary taste so much...plus this stuff is inexpensive. This gets 3 stars and I will definitely use this in a pinch....and since it is everywhere that won't be a problem.

As a fairly new pipe smoker, I'll go ahead and admit it...I'm doing some "pouch-hopping" and having a great time at it. I was a long time cigarette smoker (menthols) and am trying to find my daily smoke. Having an affinity for aromatics, I decided to try this venerable old blend due to some of the reviews I read here. Result---I like it. Not something that makes me go WOW! but a pleasant, cool smoke nonetheless. No bite, easy to light and keep lit, it's just a good--not great--pouch to have around.

I think this brand would be better as a base for mixing your own blends, however by itself it is pretty enjoyable. The aroma out of the pouch seems a bit "cheap cigar-ish". The taste once you light the bowl is pleasant, and very mild. Being an ex-cigarette smoker, this made an easy transition to smoking a pipe. No toungue bite, as well as not to strong of a room note. Overall a pleasant, easy going daily smoke. Personally i would like it to have a little bit more sweetness, but overall it is a good tobacco.

There's not much left to be said about this antique burly except to relate my personal experience with it. I had become a tobacco snob over the years and realy couldn't remember if I had ever tried PA. Using Tobacco Reviews by Rating it kept catching my eye so I ordered a tub. I now have a head high stack of empty red tubs in my garage (they must be good for something).

I seldom smoke it straight anymore but it has salvaged several hundred dollars worth 'experimental mistakes' I've ordered by blending in enough PA to make them smokable, some even become enjoyable. For example my current most favorite smoke (it changes periodically on some unknown schedule) is to scissor up a few ounces of Full Virgina Flake(bulk) into approx. 1/4" bits, mix it with an equal amount of PA, let it meld for a couple of weeks..mostly, I think, to let the moisture content equalize and WA-LA! For me you get everything that's good from both tobaccos and none of the less than good.

As a number of pipers stated, get the tub. Tastes better than the pouch version. I found the nutty, creamy taste works well in a 13/16" - 7/8" bore chamber. Also, I like it best when sipped slowly in a pipe that has only been used for VA's or mild burley blends. Solid three stars

I think as far as run of the mill burleys are concered this is one of the best.I honestly prefer smoking H&H but i like the crimp cut PA has better. One of these things you always have to have on hand, a great all day smoke.

Prince Albert, what can I say? Just smoked a bowl of this from a half pouch I probably opened three months ago. I still have trouble believing that I get this stuff for $2.45 a pouch. Creamy and nutty, with a light topdressing that in no way detracts from the burley flavor. Decent nicotine. Burns well. No distinct change even after 6 months in open package.

I like this better than Granger these days.

This is the real deal, no nonsense american tobacco and must be appreciated as such.

And of course, I always wind up snickering at the "Well, let him out" joke...

(Prince albert in a can...)

UPDATE 1/15/09; The heavyish PG thing gets old after a while, and I'm finding that I want to smoke this less than some of the other burleys these days. Despite what people say, this DOES leave briar pipes "Princed" after smoking a quantity of this (several dozen bowls)--not offensive as with some aromatics, but it definately lingers for a while in the wood/cake, especially if you don't give the pipe an ample rest for drying out.

I like to have PA in a corncob or in my quick smoke breaks as it hits the spot as far as nicotime urge and it's mild enough to smoke fast and not scorch the tongue. I find myself going to it att least once a day, generally at bedtime. It has a sweet not aromatic smell in the bag and once lit, it stays lit all the way to the bottom. It also burns very well and leaves a nice peppery ash in the bottom of the bowl. I tend towards burleys in my tobacco and this one just satisfys. While too basic to be my all the time smoke, it deserves and has a place among my tobacco shelf and it is in my opinion the best emergncy stock for when one finds themsleves out of tobacco both because of availability and the fact it makes a great mixer with other tobaccos. Not to mention the price!

Well I decided I had to try PA for some reason. I was actually pleasantly surpassed. A nice clean nutty flavor for the top 2/3 of the bowl fowled by a shy taste for the bottom 1/3. I just don't smoke the bottom 1/3 anymore. A nice tobacco at times, but there are better ones in this category such as Carter Hall.

I really haven't had this in a while, so after reading some reviews I went out and bought a can. I needed somthing to switch off from my aromatics, beings I quit Englishes and strong burleys because of high nicotine content. My Great Grandad also smoked this. While it was not his preferred brand, he often resorted to the Prince when he couldn't get Granger or Half&Half. This has an old school 1940's aroma to it. It's Pipey! Makes a pipe smell like a Pipe! Nice mild aroma and a straight, nutty burley flavor. I'll keep a can of this or Carter Hall on hand from now on so I can switch off when Iv'e had too much aromatics. Smoking aromatics constantly is like eating too much candy, and this is a nice departure from the sweet aromatics. It smokes cool and dry and doesn't bite unless you go crazy on it. Both Prince and Carter have a tendancy to burn the gums more than bite the toungue. For that I knock off a star. Nicotine content is slightly over that of my Black Cav. dominated blends. This goes great with you're morning coffee! So far, I've only smoked it in my Grabows. I would like to try this in one of my Savinelli's. I have a couple of 25 yr old Grabows with the Blue Spade on them and they smoke beautiful! If you want to take a nostalgia trip and go back in time to old fashioned Americana, buy some Prince Albert and be a King! P.S. The Pouch blend is different and has a slightly chocolaty aroma about it, and it's cut different. Stick with the canned blend, it's better!

Packing: Always packs well, grab your pouch and go tobacco. Perfect when your in a hurry, need to grab-n-go or what to smoke while tinkering on your workbench, no muss, no fuss.

Lighting: Burns consistently.

Taste: Straight Burley tobacco taste. Cherry aroma doesn't come through in the smoking experience. A consistent good smoke. This is not top shelf tobacco but there ain't nothing wrong with it neither.

My Impressions: Great for blending and cutting other tobaccos. I like the Prince for taking fishing or a walk down by the stream to cool your feet on a hot day. Sitting on a rock with my feet in a cool trout stream and a bowl of Prince Albert have made for some wonderful summer afternoons. Burns down to ash with no unpleasant taste at bowls end. I keep an old pouch around and refill it from the tub, I know I'll always have some Prince Albert around. Consistent, reliable and a damn fine smoke.

BURLEY!!!! Packs easily, burn well, and is so inexpensive that I thought the clerk made a mistake on the price when I bought it. Rather than read all the reviews here, just go buy some and try it for yourself. You are obviously curious enough to have looked it up and have read this far. It's cheap enough to toss or donate it if you don't like it.

I'm 65 years old and my Grandfather smoked Prince Albert. This is a good down to earth burley tobacco. No whistles and bells, but a good smoke never the less. I like it and smoke it from time to time. No goop, smokes down to a dry gray ash.

This is the only "drug store" blend that I smoke. In fact, I currently smoke Penzance about 95% of the time to the exclusion of most other tobaccos.

updated update I'm coming around after many pouches. I really appreciate Prince Albert because it's so lightly topped compared to every other burley I can get at the grocery store here. All the other ones are too heavy for me. The topping that is. This one, I am learning to appreciate.

Prince Albert is a classic drug-store blend. When examining the package, I think about the days of yore when you could smoke a pipe anywhere you pleased. Oh well, at least I still have the Prince to keep me company.

The cut of this tobacco is a thin crimp cut. Like all tobaccos designed for the pipe and RYO formats, it is a bit thinner than I'd like, but it does make for easy burning. The aroma in the pouch is earthy and of pure tobacco. No noticeable top note here. This tobacco is about as easy to pack as it gets, one match and YOUR OFF!

Unlike Half and Half and Carter Hall, Prince Albert isn't sweet. Where I find most drug-store tobaccos to be cloying and want to dump the bowl, Prince Albert is nutty and robust. It goes excellent with the morning coffee and has no bite. This is just a good, honest, no nonsense burley here. Occasionally, as it heats up it will become a bit bitter, but a couple of seconds without puffing cools it back down. The smoke is creamy and pleasant, with a nutty-sweet taste that reminds me of a fuller, smoother Chesterfield cigarette. Rather delicious, but giving you plenty of room to do other things besides focus on the tobacco.

The room note is pleasant enough, an unoffensive musty tobacco odor. Nice and mild for all day, especially while working on the honey-do list.

This isn't a four-star premium tobacco and doesn't claim to me. It is an old-fashioned burley that is a great companion throughout the day. I plan on keeping this around for my first smoke with a cup of coffee, as well as my excursions out to the lake to catch fish. Better than Carter Hall in every way.

I purchased a pouch of this last spring and recalled that I rated it right behind my current favorite OTC, Carter Hall. Today I bought a 14 oz. tub and had a memorable smoke on my way home. This is certainly a winner in my book!

This is not the most interesting Burley blend out there, but I actually prefer it over many tobaccos costing much more and having more significant snob appeal. There is nothing fancy about PA; it just delivers an honest, warm, nutty, real-tobacco-flavoured smoke that, in my opinion, leaves behind a pleasant aroma in the room. After all, it's one of the most popular (and longest-lived) tobaccos still available today. Somebody must be doing SOMETHING right.

"Gentlemen, you may smoke..." Boy will you ever if you fire up Prince Albert! You will get huge, billowing clouds of grey smoke. Perfect for blowing beautiful smoke rings.

The flavor is mild, slightly nutty,grassy with hints of rye toast coming through. I get no sweetness out of this. Just plain, honest tobacco flavor. The room note is just as plain as the taste.

You have to pack this properly. If you give it too much room to roam, it will burn hot and turn acrid and bitter. Sipped slowly, it will give a satisfying smoke.

This has some humectant in it, but certainly not enough to gunk up a pipe. This is a decent mixer, and great for burning out aromatic residues. I have blended it with Carter Hall, and Rum & Maple with good results.

Very masculine and straight forward, this has been the go to blend blend for legions of hard working, American men for decades.

It has been around for over a century, and it will probably be with us long after many boutique blends disappear into oblivion...

Well this certainly has had its share of reveiws but I had to put my two cents in.

When I first started smoking a pipe the OTC blends is the only ones i knew of. When I found out that you could get expensive quality blends I tried some. WOW I loved them! they were so different and expensive. Like fine wine. After I got some rounded experience built up (VApers, Latakia, Perique, ect...) I decided I would try my palate on some of the OTC blends again.

The Prince is what I went back to first. I got a plastic tub of it and upon opening it, it reminded me of a Herseys bar. Although I didn't notice chocolate in the taste it sure smelled like it in the tub (could it be??)

It packed nice and it smelled great on the char light.

It started off very nice and smooth (I always smoke slow). It didn't bite at all and it was very mild although it was very simple in taste (Burley).

As I got around half way through I really started to enjoy the straight burley taste. It wasn't anymore complex but damn for such a cheap tobacco it was really smooth and cool.

At the end of the bowl I needed to repack some more because I was so amazed at the taste and smoothness that I found with PA when I had run into such harsh blends for three times the money.

SUMMARY: The taste is far from complex but it is a very smooth and straight forward tobacco. I found that the tub is much fresher than the pouch, and fresh is the way to go with this since it doesn't age well (as noted by others). It is a GREAT mix for other more complex blends that fall short on smoothness. It's blendabilty, value, and taste make this a 3 out of 4 stars even though it's not complex.

This is a decent tobacco. I let him out of the can a few times (remember the crank call?) Nothing I would dump out my humidor for, but good on ocasion. Also good for a mixer. Back when I used to smoke cigarettes, I used to sometimes mix a pouch of this with a can of Bugler and it made decent cigarettes. I haven't really smoked it in a while.

This was the summer blend of a family friend in whom I found many good qualities. It was a blend I could always count on in my early pipe smoking days. It was inexpensive and readily available at the drug or grocery store. It had a nut-like flavor that was pretty decent. I did not have a wife at the time, but the room note was not one to drive people to the nearest Army/Navy store to check on their supply of gas masks. My tastes run more to Balkans or Scottish blends these days, but I felt duty-bound to give this blend the respect it is due. Two stars for this one -simply because burleies are not my cup of tea.

I know several people have reviewed this one quite a bit, and has gotten praise and scorn. I think that this one is wholly dependant on several factors as far as personal enjoyment. Myself, I am more of an aromatic and taste pipe smoker. In my quest for taste and such I have tried various types of tobacco in most of its forms. That being said I will continue with my review.

This is a burley tobacco and so you can taste the flavor of it very well, but it depends highly on your tastes. It tastes like rolling tobacco, which I personally like in its own right, but mostly for the flavor...but that is not to say it tastes like cigarette tobacco...which tastes pretty awful. However, it has the distinctive taste of burley tobacco too which makes it a pretty good smoke all the way around as long as it is the kind of flavor you enjoy.

The room note, is well...it leaves much to be desired. Thats all I am going to say about that. :)

It is nice to smoke when you are looking for something a little bit different, out of your regular tobacco favorites, or need something to smoke while you are busy doing something else around the house. It does have a good piece of nicotine in every smoke...if that is what you are looking for too.

All in all it can be enjoyable to smoke, don't underestimate it for its value, or its package.

You have to take PA for what it is, a quintessential American old-fashioned "my grandpa smoked it" inexpensive burley blend. I find it to be a nice filler for those times when I just want an outdoor smoke with no strong flavoring, just a tobacco taste. For me, it tended not to burn too hot nor did it bite much, unlike a virginia. On the same token, it's not all that great when you consider some of the newer, more flavorful blends by the true tobacconists.

I think this is one everybody should have in his or her rotation, as a good cheap standby. I don't think I'd want it full time by any means, but it has it's place.

For those of us who enjoy unadulterated burlies for "all day" smokes, this is a perfect blend. For the many smokers who dislike burlies, however, this experience is probably reminiscent of a trip through Dante's "Inferno." I go back and forth between PA and Carter Hall on a regular basis. The main difference seems to be: PA bites more than CH, but it's also more flavorful. I've never understood those who claim that burley has little or no taste -- it has a very distinctive flavor to me, although I readily concede that it's a very neutral flavor (absolutely no sweetness here, which is why it blends wonderfully with VAs). It usually doesn't take more than a single light to get a bowl of PA going, but it also burns VERY fast. Smoke this is as slowly as you can (its burning qualities might make this challenging), and you'll be rewarded with a very pleasant experience. My dad smoked this regularly, as did most of the guys who smoked pipes when I was growing up, and despite having gone through about a zillion tins of "premium" tobaccos, I always end up falling back on PA or CH, although I prefer the latter by a nose.

ring,ring , Hello, Do you have Prince Albert in a can?, Yes we do. Then you better let him etc. etc. remnember when? This blend brings back Memories of my Father it was his only blend. I always have some on hand and smoke a coupla bowls a week. It is available any where you look. Clouds of smoke not hard on the nose of others easy on the tongue. smoke it slooow. If you haven't tried this blend, where have you been? try it if you like burley . I like it

I have been on a trial and error of the different drug store blends for a few months now. PA is right at the top of my list. I was somewhat afraid to try it after some of the reveiws I read, but was pleasantly surprised when I did. This blend has a straight forward tobacco taste which may be some folks hang up, plus everyone has different taste. The room note is ok so I'm told (sorry to say when I smoke I can not smell the aroma).It is a mild to medium body smoke that I would recommend anyone to at least try. I love to smoke this with a cup of coffee, and the after taste is quite pleasing to me.

In my "battle of the drugstore burleys" the nod goes to Prince Albert. I reviewed Velvet yesterday. Nice, but a little too mild for me, though it was easier on the tongue. I like Prince Albert. It is a once match light and it burns to the bottem very nicely. It does burn a little hotter than Velvet, but it did not give me any tongue burn, and I puffed rather vigorously at times.

It has a decent tobacco taste. And I especially enjoy the aroma of the smoke. I went back into my car a couple hours after smoking a bowl of PA on the way home. I was treated to a wonderful toasted, roasted, nutty tobacco odor that was most pleasant. Maybe I will try Kentucky Club next, if I can find a pouch.

An Aside:

Talk about being limited in your tobacco selection: At the prison where I do indeed serve as chaplain the only tobacco that is readily available from the prison store is Bugler. The men get a bag of tobacco with enough papers at a price most men can afford. That is one acrid, foul smelling tobacco. They do carry a couple selections of ready rolled smokes, but very few can afford them. You really need a smoke to smoke one of those. They disallowed pipes and pipe tobacco as someone ruled that a pipe was drug paraphanalia. Sad.

I waited to long to order my tobacco last week and ran out of the current round of C&D's Berry Good I'd been smoking for a month or so. The new order had not yet arrived and I was in the mood for burley so I bought a pouch of SWR on the way to work the other day. I've had several smokes with this and not one of them has been unpleasant. As a matter of fact I have enjoyed it very much. It's good to know that in a jam almost anywhere in the world there is a sure bet like this one not far away. However the tobbaco did arrive from North Carolina today so I may be saying good bye on this one till next time...and I'm sure there will be a next time!

Ah, the good Prince Albert. I knew the "Do you have Prince Albert in a Can?" joke long before I knew that it was a pipe tobacco. For some reason as a child I thought it was condensed soup. In any case, this venerable classic has run such a gamut of reviews here, I felt compelled to try it. I've recently developed an interest in Burley and Americana blends; the whopping $2.00 for a pouch at Walmart convinced me that today was the day to meet the good Prince. And when I checked out, the rather voluptuous nubian damsel behind the counter said with extreme elegance..."Oh Prince Albert...has someone mentioned it to you?" Odd, perhaps she is a latent oracle. Or a closet pipe smoker.

The red box and pouch hints at a slightly indecent thrill. It is the color of a light beckoning from above a brothel doorway. Amazingly dry to the touch and only slightly stale sweetness of tobacco within.

I packed up my favorite "cheap" burley pipe and up the smoke went. Thick, cool curls. Oh my - it is actually quite pleasant. Far and away better than the $9.00 pound of black cavendish pudding I tried to smoke my first time out. A bit more mellow and less processed tasting than Granger. No candy flavor, just burley. A bit of bitterness - sure! But it is burley, and likely not quite the most delicately cultivated crop. I do agree that relights are quite harsh. But I didn't find it sitting around unsmoked to be an issue. While inexpensive, I can't call it "cheap" tobacco. It does burn mighty fast though. So that ounce and change may not last too long if I choose to smoke this regularly.

And I could except for one thing - the nicotine hit me rather squarely. I smoke Haddo's and Nightcap with some frequency. Some of Mr. Tarler's blends can deliver quite a kick in the @$$. But this stuff really made the room move. Aside from that, it was a completely satisfying smoke. I won't give up Cumberland or Margate for it, but if the Good Prince were my only company, I would still smoke a pipe with pleasure.

I learned to enjoy smoking Burley tobaccos via Mac Baren's Burley London Blend and Edgeworth Sliced. After 20+ years of pipesmoking and reading the reviews of good old PA, both here and by William Serad, I thought, "Why not?"

I approached it expecting to not like it much. I had found it's competitor, the venerable Sir Walter Raleigh, to be over-cased and sour, and a textbook example of the dreaded Burley curse.

The aroma in the pouch was indeed sweet but not cloying. When the match hits the weed, the sweetness is indeed there, but faintly. The main presence is that nutty/grassy full flavor that Burley lovers enjoy so much with a hint of dark chocolate beginning about mid-bowl.

I found myself enjoying this tobacco very much. It keeps the same great Burley flavor througout the bowl. I have now been through several pouches, and it is quickly becoming my all-day smoke.

It won't replace my Dunhill London Mixture but it is an excellent replacement for the lately-lamented Edgeworth Sliced. I agree with the above reviewer that if this tobacco were $10 per ounce it would find a more grateful audience.

I don't smoke this regularly. If "drugstore" blends are all you can get and you are o.k. with Burley tobaccos, this one will fill the bill. It is not for your over $25 pipe. It is best in a Grabow or cob. The filter in those cheap pipes removes a good deal of the harsher elements of these pouch tobacs. Also an o.k. roll-your-own cigarette tobac for those who like Pall Mall unfiltered cigs. I prefer the flavor of Carter Hall.

Like many pipe tobaccos, PA has two faces, depending on how fast it's smoked. Except I would say that PA is much less forgiving of impatient puffing than most blends. Slow and nice, PA is as pleasant a Burley as you'll ever need, with a nutty, somewhat distant, ole' fashioned (yet kind of industrial) flavor and pretty good strength. Smoke it fast (or worse, let the pipe go stone cold and relight hours later) and the illusion of gentleness and peace blows apart in a bitter blast of reality. So with all the great tobaccos out there, why waste words on lowly PA ? Well, it can be found anywhere and everywhere, and it's dirt cheap. If this were all that were available (a remote but tangible) possibility, I might still be a pipe smoker. For a little more aroma, slightly less strength, and a hint of sweetness, try PA's equally ubiquitous stablemate, Carter Hall.

There are reviewers on this list that mainline latakia and try to find methods of intensifying it. There are innumerable straight virginia smokers who consider it perfectly normal. At least one lit up pure perique and survived to report on it. Why is pure burley not afforded equal respect? Yes, PA is as simple as any single type of leaf. Monochromatic? Probably, but so is a single malt scotch. I prefer the term "focused" myself and derive pleasure from PA the same as I do as my six-fold priced Marlin Flake. Why do I have a hunch that if this cost $6 an ounce it would be revered?

Sure, I like wunderkind Pease's artistry with mixtures. Consider the advantage of the pure leaf, though. By smoking and learning the components separately (ahem, not perique), I enjoy mixtures more. Now I especially like Barbary Coast because I can identify how the parts make the whole.

Anyway, PA, puffed slowly, is a joy. I just plain like just plain burley. Cob pipes match the price, smoking characteristics and perceived sofisikation fine. (I don't crap up my good briars with strong latakia blends either). Get over the snobbiness already. More and more I'm realizing the benefits of dedicated pipes to specific types of tobacco.

It may be an acquired taste some will never have (like turkish), but every piper should try it at some point if only for reference. Blow $2 on it, $3 on a new cob, smoke it slowly while fresh and pretend it all cost you much more. BTW, I sip (but not pretentiously!) old single malt scotch with this. Coffee is also a good mate.

Ok, so this is my first review ever of any tobacco and I thought it would be a good place to start. I'd like to add first that I've smoked a pipe regularly for about a year now but I've smoked pipes on and off for about 14 years.

We all know that Prince Albert is burley and more burley and there is really nothing that exceptional about it but IMHO that's what is good about it. I think it's a good way to start the day when you are just waking up. It's like an old friend and just as reliable to boot. It's easy to pack, it does not leave you feeling scorched and if you're in a hurry you don't feel bad about not finishing the bowl.

But I would not recommend this as an all day smoke or an evening smoke in one of your better briar pipes. I've tried smoking it in one of my briars at night and found that it just was really kind of boring that way. Somehow in a cheap corn cob pipe in the morning ( at least for me ) it takes on a different ( better ) character and provides some nostalgic pleasure.

"Cheap, sour burley" was my initial reaction to this old drugstore blend. Then it occurred to me that people who like bitter Dutch beer or black, unsugared coffee might enjoy the astringency of this otherwise mild burley cavendish. It is just the taste of Burley tobacco. And after I tried it in a small-bowled pipe and got it to smolder smooth and quiet, the cashew-nut gentleness kind of appealed to me. Nice, smokey after-taste. I managed the whole pipe with just one match. Considering that the pouch cost me $2.77 (1 ½ ounce) members of the brotherhood on a fixed income might enjoy Prince Albert, quite a bit, especially if they are slow-puffers. Overheat this and it will get sour and bite like hell.

Mind you, I am talking about the straight PA in the red-coloured pouch or can. AVOID the cased versions, they are AWFUL.

I never tried this years ago when I first picked up the pipe. I was trying to be too high end in my tastes. Prince Albert just appeared to be way too ordinary even for an extremely ordinary guy like me.

It was about a year ago (after a trial by fire review) that I gave it a shot. I love the smell upon opening the pouch (kinda boozy). I lit up and was amazed about how good and nutty it tasted and was relieved that it did not get bitter. I was at a public meeting that allowed smoking and everyone loved the scent (yes Pipestud is right the ladies were snorting the pouch). Added pluses: it goes well with a cup of joe, and as the same reviewer pointed out yep it can mellow the hottest blends.

I do not smoke this daily but it is good to know it is out there at almost every place tobacco is sold. It is not excellent but you could do worse (at least I have).

I've been on the lookout for various inexpensive burley blends for awhile and have been pleasantly surprised by various "mundane" offerings available at truck stops and convenience stores.

Maybe I have simple tastes. Maybe I'm just a burley fiend. Or maybe it's because I am honest and don't impress easily with "high-end" name brands but PA is a tobacco I really enjoyed and will buy again... even if it were more expensive.

If you enjoy burley give this simple tobacco a try... but only if the person you want to impress is yourself and nobody else.